Four Times Alex and Maggie Went on a Date
by brinshannara
Summary: Since I would have really liked to see more of Alex and Maggie actually dating, this fic will consist of four dates that I think they had together: the first date, the second date, the sixth date and the tenth date. All of these would have happened between the end of Medusa (2x08) and the start of Supergirl Lives (2x09). Warning, Chapters 1-3 rated Teen, but Chapter 4 is Mature!
1. The First Date

When Alex woke up again, it was 10:24 in the morning. She felt completely rested and she smiled, remembering the previous night's events. She lay there, in her bed, grinning like the fool she was, for several minutes, remembering Maggie's words, her gentle touch, her soft kisses… She sighed happily and rolled over to grab her phone.

"A mother knows," her mom had replied. Alex smiled at that, noting that they would have to have a talk one of these days, about what it was, exactly, that mothers knew.

Another text was from Maggie. "How'd you sleep, beautiful?"

She blushed and responded. "I slept the sleep of the dead. It was amazing. How about you?"

Then, she sent Kara a quick text, indicating she should definitely call her.

Alex forced herself out of bed and headed to the washroom to use the facilities and then shower. Twenty minutes later, she emerged, damp hair hanging down around her face, wearing comfortable sweatpants and a t-shirt. She headed to the kitchen and started the coffee maker. She glanced at the clock. It was only eleven in the morning. How on earth was she going to make it to seven?

The answer was keeping herself as busy as possible. Alex finished reviewing the abandoned briefings from the night before and, after a bite to eat, did some more detailed work from her laptop while sitting on the couch. She could just barely still smell Maggie's scent on the sofa's cushions, but every so often, she'd get a whiff of the other woman and she'd close her eyes and remember that last night had actually happened. That Maggie had come over and kissed her and then they'd kissed some more and they'd cuddled and there had been more kissing… She exhaled gently and opened her eyes. And she had a date for tonight. She checked the time and was disappointed it was only half-past one in the afternoon.

"I'm never gonna make it," she groaned. She shut her laptop and reached for her phone. She and Maggie had been texting, on and off, throughout the last couple of hours.

"I'm never gonna make it," she informed Maggie. "7 o'clock is way too far away."

"The best things in life are worth waiting for, Danvers," was the reply she got, a couple of minutes later.

Alex sighed. "But five and a half hours is soooooo long!" She idly hoped her impatience would translate properly in the text.

"Patience is a virtue," came the reply.

Alex rolled her eyes. "You know what else is a virtue? Chastity. And, based on last night, I'm pretty sure neither of us have too much interest in that." She sent the text triumphantly and, a moment later, her phone rang.

"Hel— Maggie? Are you laughing?" Alex asked.

"Yes," the other woman said, as best as she could, while still laughing.

She chuckled. "So do I win?"

"You win, you win," the other woman said, still snickering, before she managed to take a full breath. "Okay, Danvers, fine, how's six, instead of seven?" Maggie asked.

"Six would be perfect," Alex grinned.

"I'll pick you up at six on the dot," Maggie confirmed. There was a short pause. "I may have to shift a couple of things around for tonight, but I have to admit, I'm looking forward to seeing you for an extra hour."

"Me too," Alex beamed. "And thanks."

"Happy to, Danvers," she replied. "You know, you could have just asked me to pick you up at six instead of complaining about how far away seven is."

Alex found herself blushing. "I guess I could have," she admitted.

"I mean, I enjoyed teasing you and I definitely enjoyed the laugh," the other woman said, "but feel free to let me know if you ever want to change anything in the future, all right?"

"Okay," she said, nodding. "I mean… I didn't really expect you to change our plans at all. I was just…" She sighed. "I was missing you and I wanted you to know that I was eager to see you," she said.

"I'm eager to see you, too," Maggie said, gently. "That's why I'm changing our plans to pick you up at six."

"Six," Alex repeated. "Looking forward to it."

"All right. I've got a few things to organize, so I'll see you then, Danvers," Maggie said. "Bye."

Alex giggled. "Bye."

She hung up the phone, still smiling.

Kara still hadn't responded to her text from earlier in the morning, so she called her and was directed straight to voice mail. "So, uh, you should call me immediately because I have a DATE tonight. With Maggie. I'm going on a date. With Maggie." She giggled. "She's picking me up at six, so call me before then!" She hung up and smiled, knowing it would get a reaction from her sister.

She looked at the time, again. It wasn't even quarter to two.

"Maybe I should have pushed for five?" Alex pondered aloud.

In the end, six was just enough time to allow Alex a good, hour-long run and another period, almost as long, in which she tried on virtually every outfit she owned, debating whether she should wear a dress or slacks or a skirt or... the possibilities seemed endless. She also had a leftover slice of pizza that would tide her over until dinner, managed to take her second shower of the day, blow dried her hair and applied a bit of makeup. By 5:57, she was standing at her kitchen counter, dressed in nice, black dress slacks with a dark red, silk button up shirt, wondering if she should bring her gun with her to dinner. After a moment's hesitation, she elected to bring the gun, just in case, and had just placed it in her black purse when the knock came at the door.

Smiling, Alex swung the door open and was rewarded with the beautiful Maggie Sawyer standing there, holding out a lovely bouquet of orange, yellow and white lilies.

"You look amazing, Danvers," she said, easily, handing Alex the bouquet.

She beamed. "Thanks," she said, blushing lightly. "You look great, too," she said, after having shyly given the other woman a quick once-over. She was wearing stylish, yet practical, black boots, black slacks, much like her own, a crisp, white button down shirt, complete with a slim, black tie, and a four-button grey vest, topped off with what Alex recognized as Maggie's favourite black leather jacket, her hair loose, cascading down on to her shoulders. "Come on in," she said, backing up to allow Maggie entrance.

Alex closed the door after Maggie walked in and then turned to face her.

"Hi," she said, smiling.

"Hi," Maggie replied, also smiling.

Suddenly shy and unsure of how to greet the detective, Alex decided to lean in and kiss Maggie's cheek, softly. "Thank you," she said, hefting the bouquet, as she headed towards the kitchen to fetch a vase. "They're beautiful."

"So are you," Maggie answered.

Alex blushed again. "Thank you," she murmured, placing the flowers on the counter and filling the vase with water.

"Just telling the truth, Danvers," she said.

The taller woman flicked her eyes towards the other woman, almost in disbelief.

"What is it?" Maggie asked, noticing the look.

"Uh, nothing, it's, I'm, it's fine," Alex stammered, her hands slightly shaking as she trimmed the stems of the flowers.

The shorter woman came up to her and covered her hands in her own, carefully placing the scissors on the counter. She gently turned the taller woman to face her. "Alex, it's me. It's okay. Whatever it is, you can tell me. If you want to cancel, that's fine."

"What? No, I don't want to cancel!" Alex exclaimed.

Maggie smiled. "It would be fine if you did."

She inhaled. "I don't," she repeated, softly.

"So what is it?" the detective asked, tilting her head in a familiar fashion.

Alex exhaled, shakily. "I just…" She swallowed. "I just don't know that I was prepared for all of this."

"I warned you I was going to sweep you off your feet, Danvers. What, you didn't believe me?" teased Maggie.

She chuckled. "No, I mean… All this attention. From…" She sighed. "From someone I _like_."

"Mmm," Maggie hummed, understanding. "Kind of like the nervous feeling you had on your very first date, but times ten?"

"Times a million," Alex confessed.

Maggie reached out and pulled Alex to her, slowly, allowing her to pull away if she wanted to, which she didn't. Alex let herself be held close by the other woman and slipped her arms around Maggie's neck.

"Just relax," Maggie said, softly. "Your pace, remember?"

Alex nodded.

"I'd like to take you out tonight, if that's okay."

She smiled and pulled back. "It's okay," she said, quietly. "I'm sorry, I just… wasn't prepared for how… overwhelming, I guess, it feels?"

Maggie caught one of Alex's hands and gently kissed the back of it. "Nothing to be sorry for," she assured her. She paused and considered, as Alex continued cutting the flower stems. "Did you, uh… did you talk to anyone about tonight? Your sister?"

She shook her head and put the arrangement into the vase. "No, I haven't had a chance to talk to Kara yet today."

"So you haven't, like, talked to anyone?"

Alex looked over at her. "Not really, no." She laughed. "I did text my mom, who, I swear to God, knew that you liked me."

She looked confused. "Your mother knew? What?"

Alex shook her head. "Long story. Something about mothers knowing stuff, I don't even know," she grinned. "But no, I didn't tell her that we were going out tonight."

The shorter woman nodded. "You know that I'm more of the drinking and losing my cool type of person, but…" She shrugged. "Maybe talking about this stuff with someone could be helpful." She shrugged again. "Just a suggestion."

Alex nodded. "But I have you, right?"

"Yeah, of course you do, but what, you're going to gush to me about how nice the flowers I got you were? How hot I looked?" she teased. "It's important to have people to talk to, Alex. That's why I wanted you to come out, at least to your family. You should be able to talk to people who know, who understand, who will listen."

She smiled, putting her hands on her hips. "So who do you talk to?"

The detective laughed. "Got me there, Danvers. I have a couple of friends, some people at work, but, you're right, I don't have a lot of people to talk to. Then again, this…" She paused, waving her right index finger at the space between them. "This isn't my first rodeo."

"Point taken," Alex smiled.

"So," Maggie said. "Are we ready? Honestly, if you want to cancel, that's okay, too."

The taller woman grabbed her purse. "I'm ready to be swept off of my feet."

"Good," she said, eyes twinkling and dimples showing.

They left the apartment and Alex tentatively slid her arm around Maggie's waist as they walked towards the stairwell. She frowned, stopping. "Maggie, is that your gun in your waistband?"

Maggie laughed. "I'm a cop, Danvers, of course it is. Sorry, I'll leave it in the car if it bothers you."

Alex sheepishly opened her purse and showed Maggie the contents, causing the detective to laugh even harder.

Maggie drove them to the restaurant in her car and had insisted on opening the car door for Alex and shutting it for her once she'd gotten settled. She'd had boys perform these so-called chivalrous gestures for her in the past and had, as a rule, hated them. She had smiled as Maggie had closed the door, realizing that maybe chivalry was okay, under certain conditions. Like when a beautiful woman wanted to treat you as if you were something special.

They got to the restaurant, a small but classy Italian place, and the maître'd, a portly older Italian man, immediately burst into a smile.

"Ahhh, la signorina Margherita!" he exclaimed, coming around from behind his podium to hug Maggie and kiss her cheeks not once, not twice, but three times.

"Hey, Raymondo," she said, smiling. "Good to see you too."

"It has been too long," he chided her, gently. He looked over at Alex. "And who is this lovely vision?" he asked, taking Alex's hand in his and kissing the back of it lightly.

"Raymondo, this is Alex Danvers. Alex, this is Raymondo Sparacello."

"Cara mia," Raymondo said, returning Alex's hand. "Any friend of Maggie's is a friend of ours here."

She looked at Maggie. "Come here often?"

The detective laughed. "You could say that."

"It is our tiramisù," he said in a stage-whisper. "She cannot resist! It is her grand weakness."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Really? Tiramisù is your weakness?" she giggled.

"Wait 'till you try it," Maggie grinned.

Raymondo gathered up two menus. "Per favore, ladies, follow me."

He led them through the small dining room, which was already crowded, to a somewhat secluded table for two, set in the back-right corner. Two votive candles in coloured glass holders gave a bit of extra ambiance and light to the table. Maggie sat down while Raymondo held out Alex's chair for her. She chuckled and sat down, letting him push the chair in. "Thanks," she said.

"Fernando will be your waiter this evening," Raymondo said. "Such a pleasure, as always, Margherita," he said, handing them both their menus.

"Thanks, Raymondo," Maggie said.

Alex looked at Maggie. "So you're on a first-name basis with the staff here? Is the tiramisù really that good?"

She laughed. "Yes, it is. But I've been coming here for years. It's a family-owned restaurant. The Sparacellos came to the United States in the 1970s and started the restaurant pretty much as soon as they arrived. Francesco, well, he insists on Frank or Frankie, is the son of the head chef, Ricardo, and he's on the force. He was one of my first friends in National City. Before he realized I was gay, he brought me here on a date." She grinned. "I might have broken his heart at this very table."

Alex snorted. "Bet he took that really well."

"He did, actually, once he stopped banging his head on the table…" she mused. "But the real problem was that he'd made the mistake of telling his whole family that he liked me and that he was bringing me here, so his dad came to the table, his uncle Raymondo, his brother, Fernando, his cousins, his cousin's kids… his whole family was basically here, including his mother, Maria-Luisa."

"Oh boy."

"So the whole night, they kept coming by. It was certainly interesting," she smiled. "But they're good people, it's good food and they are totally okay with my being gay. They still tease Frankie about me."

Alex smiled. "So why do they call you Margherita?"

Maggie looked up at Alex, confused. "Because that's my name?"

She frowned. "Your name is Margherita?"

"No, that's the Italian version of Margaret."

"Your name is Margaret?"

"What the hell did you think my name was, Danvers?" Maggie asked, laughing.

She blinked. "Uh, Maggie?"

"Maggie's a nickname for Margaret," she said, still chuckling. "You know, like Alex is short for Alexandra?"

"I thought Marge was short for Margaret!" Alex was blushing.

"Margaret has a lot of nicknames. There's Maggie, Marge, Meg, Peggy, Midge, Greta…" she listed. "I just like Maggie best. But, officially, my name is Margaret Ellen Sawyer," the detective confessed, making a face. "And if you ever call me by my full name, just know I'm going to flash back to being a kid with my mom yelling at me."

Alex smiled. "I promise not to." She nodded. "Margaret," she said, testing out how it fit. "It's nice."

"It's awful, Danvers, you can say it." She shrugged. "I was named for my great-grandmother. It's definitely an old-fashioned name."

She laughed. "It's not. It's just…" She considered. "It's just that I think of you as Maggie," she said. "I haven't even called you Sawyer in ages."

Maggie nodded. "That's true, you haven't." She thought about it. "Do you mind that I still call you Danvers?"

She shook her head. "I like it," she said, shyly. "It's different from being called that at work. It's… you say it softer."

"I'm glad you like it, because I like calling you Danvers," Maggie said, quietly. "But, just so we're even, what's your middle name?"

Alex shook her head. "Nope."

"What do you mean, nope? Alexandra Nope Danvers?" she kidded.

"I mean, no, no way, no one gets my middle name. Ever."

"That's not fair," remarked Maggie.

"I never use it. It's not on anything except my birth certificate," Alex maintained.

The detective considered. "The DMV must have it."

Alex snorted. "My driver's license is one of two pieces of identification that says Alexandra, like my passport. And neither have my middle name."

Maggie looked at Alex carefully. "Kara must know. She likes potstickers, I think you said, right? I bet if I feed her enough potstickers, she'll tell me," she said, confidently.

"There aren't enough potstickers in the world," promised Alex, smiling.

They were perusing their menus, with Maggie giving Alex her own recommendations, when a tall, handsome man showed up at their table, notepad in hand.

"Maggie, how are you doing?" he asked.

"Fernando," she smiled. "Good, thanks, good. You?"

"Can't complain," he said. "Adriana is starting preschool next week, so Sara and I are excited."

"Oh, that's amazing. You'll have to send me pictures. I can't believe she's old enough for preschool already!" Maggie beamed.

"I know, it's like she was just born yesterday." He shook his head.

Maggie smiled. "So this is Alex," she said, indicating Alex with an outstretched hand. "Alex, this is Fernando. He's Frankie's younger brother."

"A pleasure," he nodded to Alex.

"Likewise," she said.

"Are we ready to order or do you ladies need a few more minutes?"

Maggie raised an eyebrow. "Alex?"

"I'm ready. Are you ready?"

Fernando laughed. "Maggie probably has the menu memorized at this point."

Maggie gave him a good-natured dirty look. "You still haven't fixed the typo on page three."

"God," he muttered, "you try explaining to Pop that our forty-some menus all have a typo."

"Don't think I won't!" she mock-threatened, causing him to laugh. "Anyway, Alex, go for it," she smiled.

She smiled a thank you. "I think I'll have the small caesar salad to start, then the linguini al pesto, if you please."

"Great, the caesar and then the linguini al pesto," he said, scribbling it down. "Got it." He took her menu. "Maggie?"

"A small house salad, with the house Italian dressing, of course, followed by the pasta primavera," she said, "but—"

"Not the capellini," he interrupted, rolling his eyes. "I know, I know. You want spaghettini?"

"You know me well," she smiled, handing her menu to him. "Thanks."

"Of course," he replied, making a note on his pad. "Something to drink?"

Maggie looked up at Alex. "Wine?"

"Sure," she said.

"You like white? I think a nice Sicilian white would go well with both of our meals."

"Sounds good," Alex nodded.

"A half-litre of… I don't remember the name of it. The one I had last year, the one you recommended to me?" she asked.

"I know just the one," he nodded, making a final note on his pad. "I'll be right back with some water and some bread."

"Thanks, Fernando," Maggie replied. "And say hi to Ricardo for me."

He smiled. "Please, he saw your reservation. He'll be out here himself at some point to say hi. You know Pop."

"Oh God," she laughed. "Thanks for the warning."

"Anytime," he said, heading back towards the kitchen.

Alex was smiling at Maggie.

"What?"

"Nothing," she said, softly. "It was just a fun interaction to observe."

"How's that?"

Alex smiled again. "Well, you know the whole family pretty well, it looks like. You know and care about his kid. He knows your preferred order. You know there's a typo on page three of the menu." She reached out and took Maggie's hands in her own, enjoying the feel of the soft skin beneath her fingertips. "I just… I've never really seen this side of you before. I like it."

Maggie blushed lightly. "I've known them for years," she said, by way of explanation. "And Frankie is always talking about them. All the time. Like, try being on a stakeout with him for eight hours. You're gonna spend six hours talking about his family members and their drama, one hour talking about the case, if you're lucky, and the other hour talking about what he's going to eat at the restaurant after his shift." She smiled.

"I'm going to enjoy getting to know you and your family and your friends, Maggie Sawyer," Alex said, squeezing her hands gently.

They took their time eating, chatting and laughing. At one point, Maggie even twirled a forkful of her spaghettini for Alex, speared a piece of broccoli with the fork and offered it to Alex across the table. It was a stark contrast to the last time that had happened, Alex remarked to herself, as she opened her mouth and allowed Maggie to feed her the mouthful of pasta. She closed her eyes in delight. Not only was the food remarkably good, unlike the snail eggs a certain jackass had insisted she try, but she found she really enjoyed that Maggie had thought nothing of offering her the mouthful on her own fork. It was… intimate, Alex decided. And that was something she hadn't wanted at all with Max. But it was something she absolutely wanted with Maggie. It was a new feeling, this desire for intimacy, and it was wonderful.

Fernando came back to clear their plates and to offer them the dessert menu. Well, he offered Alex a dessert menu.

"Where's mine?" Maggie demanded.

The waiter laughed. "You're having the Maggie Sawyer-sized tiramisù."

"So, a tiny piece of tiramisù?" Alex deadpanned.

"Hey!" Maggie exclaimed, while Fernando laughed again.

"Oh, that was clever," he commented. He turned to Maggie. "I like her." He turned back and winked at Alex.

Alex blushed and quickly skimmed over the menu while Fernando cleared their plates and left to return them to the kitchen. "It all looks so good," she commented.

"The tiramisù is the best thing on there," Maggie said. "I basically tried everything else on the dessert menu before I had it. The tiramisù is where it's at. I could eat it all day, every day."

Fernando soon returned. "Has she convinced you that the tiramisù is the only logical choice yet?"

Alex laughed. "I think she has, yes."

"Two servings of tiramisù," he said, smiling. "Coffee? Tea?"

"I'll have an espresso," Maggie said. "As usual."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Am I going to be able to sleep if I have one?"

Fernando nodded. "We're actual Italians who know how to make an espresso. Not like Starbucks or whoever," he scoffed.

She chuckled. "I'll have an espresso too, then, please."

"Coming right up!"

As he left for the kitchen, an older man approached them, wearing an apron, wiping his hands on a dishtowel he then rested on his shoulder. He was stocky with a full head of dark grey hair and he was smiling at Maggie.

"Cara Margherita!" he bellowed, arms outstretched.

"Ricardo," she said, standing up, allowing herself to be squeezed tightly.

He smiled. "As always, we are so happy to have you here," he said.

"Thanks, Ricardo, it's always nice to come by," she replied, sitting back down. "Ricardo, this is Alex Danvers. Alex, this is Ricardo Sparacello, the head chef and owner."

"Bellissima!" he said, taking Alex's hand and kissing the back of it, much like his brother had done previously.

"Hi," she said, shyly. "The pesto was amazing," she said.

"Ah, is an old family recipe," he said, jovially. "From Genoa. The secret is in the way the basil is crushed!" he confided.

"Whatever it is, keep it up, it was great," Alex smiled.

"Grazie," he said to her, before turning to Maggie. "Margherita, why you no like my capellini, eh?"

She laughed. "Ricardo, we have this conversation any time I ask for the spaghettini. You know I don't like how thin the angel hair is!"

"For anyone else, I would say no, no, let them have something else!" He laughed. "But for you, cara mia, anything."

"Thanks, Ricardo," she said. "How's Frankie doing? I don't see much of him now that I'm in the science division."

"Bene, he is good. You know he and Laura are getting married in the spring?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm so happy for him! What's she like?"

"Ah, she is quite lovely," he said, "but not as lovely as you!" He winked.

She laughed. "Now, now, Ricardo," she chided him, "you're not being respectful of my date."

He chuckled. "Scusami, scusami, Alessandra," he apologized, addressing Alex. "You are a very lucky girl to have this one," he said.

"Oh God," Maggie said, flushing bright red, instantly.

Alex just beamed. "I know," she replied.

After another hug, this time both of them receiving one, Ricardo headed back to the kitchen, while Fernando arrived with the dessert and coffee. The two servings of tiramisù were enormous.

"Oh my God, I am never going to be able to finish this!" Alex exclaimed.

"Don't worry," Fernando assured her, "Maggie will finish it for you," he grinned.

Maggie took the opportunity to smack him lightly on the arm with the back of her hand. "Jerk," she muttered.

"It's the truth!" he laughed.

"You can go now, Fernando," she chuckled.

"I once saw her eat two of those!" he called as he walked away.

"Oh God, I'm going to kill him," Maggie muttered, as Alex laughed.

They spent another forty-five minutes at the restaurant. Alex almost managed to finish all of her tiramisù and, true to Fernando's claims, Maggie did eat the last couple of bites.

When Fernando brought the check, Alex tried to grab it before Maggie had a chance and Fernando just laughed.

"Nice try," he said, "but I'm under strict orders from this one to never, ever, ever hand the bill to anyone but her."

Alex narrowed her eyes at the detective who didn't even look at the total and just handed over her credit card.

"And the usual tip, of course," she said.

"That would be why I listen to her," Fernando said, by way of apology, as he headed back towards the register.

"Thank you," Alex said, softly. "You didn't have to do that."

Maggie finished what remained in her water glass. "No, but I wanted to. Besides," she said, "standard lesbian rules."

Alex laughed. "Which state what?"

"Well, you know how when straight people date, it's usually the guy who pays?"

She nodded.

"Lesbian rules state that whoever asks the other lady out is the one who pays. So if you want to pay next time, just ask me out before I ask you."

"Maggie, will—"

"Ah, no, nice try, Danvers, but you gotta wait until this date is over," she grinned.

Alex made a mental note to ask Maggie out the instant this date was over. Not that she wanted it to be over, of course. It was already almost nine o'clock and she found she wasn't at all looking forward to saying goodnight to the detective. She said as much as they left the restaurant, having said goodbye to Fernando and Raymondo on their way.

Maggie just grabbed her hand in hers as they walked towards the car. "Good thing that the date's not over yet."

The taller woman raised an eyebrow. "Hey, if you think you're gonna get lucky because you paid for dinner…" she joked.

The detective stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Alex. "That is not at all what I think," she said, seriously.

"Maggie, I was kidding," Alex said.

She looked up at her. "I want you to know I'm serious about this being your timeline. What you want. When you want. Even _if_ you want." She reached up and brushed Alex's hair from her face. "No pressure, okay?"

She smiled, feeling warm and safe. "Okay."

"Okay." Satisfied, Maggie grasped Alex's hand again, which delighted the taller woman, and they went back to Maggie's car, where Maggie, once again, opened the door for her.

They drove along for several minutes, chatting about various things, ranging from Maggie's apparent love of bonsai trees, which Alex still wasn't completely sure was serious, to Kara, which led to another ultimately unsuccessful attempt by Maggie to extract Alex's middle name from her.

"If you want to signify that I'm in trouble," Alex explained, "just call me Alexandra." She shuddered. "Talk about your flashbacks to being yelled at by your mother," she muttered.

"I'll keep that in mind, Danvers," Maggie said, "but I'm not letting the middle name thing go entirely. One day, when you least suspect it, I'll wheedle it out of you."

"Good luck," Alex laughed. "I can pass a lie-detector test, I've been threatened, beat up… I'm impervious to pretty much all methods of intelligence extraction."

"I have my ways," she grinned.

"Can't wait to see what you've got," she replied, deciding to flirt a little.

Alex could see Maggie's smile, even in the poor light. "Patience, Danvers, patience."

They arrived at their destination and Maggie insisted on opening Alex's door for her as she got out of the car, too. "Thank you," she said, taking Maggie's proffered arm.

Together, they walked up to the front door of the planetarium, which was clearly closed to the public. It was dark inside but at the front door, there was a blonde woman waiting.

"Hey Maggie," the woman said, greeting her with a hug.

"Hey," she said, squeezing the other woman for a moment, before pulling back. "Alex, this is Stef Dalton. Stef, this is Alex Danvers."

"Pleased to meet you," Stef said, shaking Alex's hand more firmly than Alex had expected.

"Likewise," Alex said, smiling, but wondering who this attractive blonde was who had just hugged her girlfr— her date.

"Well, come on in." Stef looked at the time. "I can give you until ten. That okay?"

"Should be fine," Maggie said, taking Alex's hand in hers. "All set up?"

"Of course," Stef said. "Have fun."

"Thanks, lady. I owe you," the detective said, leading Alex away.

"Bye!" Alex called.

Stef waved, smiling.

"What was that all about?" she asked as they walked down a series of corridors.

"You'll see," Maggie said, mysteriously.

Alex let it drop, deciding she'd like to be surprised. She trusted Maggie. So when Maggie asked her to wait outside a room for a moment, she did so. And when Maggie came back out and asked her to keep her eyes closed, she did as the other woman requested, trusting Maggie to lead her into the room. And when Maggie told her she could open her eyes, she did.

She gasped. The room's domed ceiling was filled with stars, but at one end of the room, greenish lights danced. "The Northern Lights," she whispered.

Maggie smiled. "Or a reasonable facsimile." She took Alex's hand and led her to where a blanket lay spread out over the carpet. A bottle of champagne rested nearby in an ice bucket and two champagne flutes were nearby. They sat down and Maggie poured them each a serving.

"To beautiful sights," Maggie said, holding her flute aloft, looking directly into Alex's eyes.

She blushed lightly. "To beautiful sights," she repeated, clinking her glass against Maggie's as the two of them continued to gaze deeply into each other's eyes before taking a sip from their respective drinks.

Maggie smiled at her and turned to face the recreation of the Northern Lights. "When I was a kid," she said, softly, "I used to love to go outside at night and just stare into infinity. Stare into the darkness, dotted with tiny lights. See the rest of the galaxy, the rest of infinity." She took a sip of her champagne. "It was always easy. The stars were almost always there. None of the same light pollution that we have here in the city." She scoffed, softly. "That took me some getting used to," she admitted. "When I first came to National City, I nearly cried because all but the brightest stars and planets were hidden. I couldn't even see Orion, which was always my favourite."

Alex smiled at that, being a small-town girl herself. "I grew up with the stars in the sky, too," she said. "Kara and I used to point them out to one another. I taught her all the constellations I knew." It was true. Kara had been to other planets, seen far more distant stars, but none of the stars visible from Earth seemed familiar to her. Even if she'd been able to see something like the North Star from Krypton, it would have been from a completely different vantage point.

"Big sister Danvers," Maggie smiled.

"Guilty as charged, Detective Sawyer," Alex agreed, sipping her champagne. "I love the way the lights move," she said, quietly.

"Me too," agreed Maggie. "One night, back when I was a kid, back in Nebraska, I couldn't sleep. It was late. I should have been in bed. But I had this feeling that I should go outside. And, when I got outside, in the backyard, I looked up and there they were. The Northern Lights." She smiled. "They were a lot fainter than they are here, of course," she said, "but that was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen."

"I've never had the chance," Alex admitted. "Midvale is too far south." She chuckled. "Remember I flew to Norway for the DEO a few weeks ago? I was there for something like three hours and did I get to see the Northern Lights? Nope," she laughed.

"Well, then, I'm glad we get to see them together," Maggie said, "even if it's just here."

She smiled back. "It's nice." She sighed, happily. "This is nice." She glanced over at Maggie and saw that the other woman was looking at her. "What?" she asked, blushing.

"This is nice. But you're beautiful." Maggie put her champagne down. "So beautiful." She reached out and cupped Alex's cheek in her left hand and lightly dragged her thumb across Alex's lips.

"Maggie," Alex breathed, gazing at the other woman, eyes tearing up.

"So beautiful." She leaned in and pressed her lips against Alex's. In Alex's mind, it didn't last nearly long enough, but it was sweet, fueled by emotion rather than lust, although there was certainly a tinge of that, as well. Alex felt Maggie pull away and reluctantly pulled back herself.

"Wow," she whispered, eyes still closed.

Maggie just smiled and nuzzled Alex's cheek lightly before sitting up. "Tell me what your favourite constellation is."

She sighed happily and leaned against Maggie as she started talking about Corvus. From Earth's perspective, Kara's home sun of Rao was a part of the Corvus constellation, Clark had once explained to them, on one of his rare visits to the Danvers home. He'd said that if Krypton had still existed, one could probably have seen it with a telescope. Instantly, Corvus had become Alex and Kara's favourite constellation. Every time Kara saw it, she said, she felt a little closer to home.

"That's not a typical choice, Danvers," Maggie commented, wrapping her left arm around Alex's shoulders.

"I'm not a typical person," she replied, smiling.

Maggie chuckled. "No, you most certainly are not," she agreed. "So where is Corvus? Can you point it out?

She smiled, explaining it wasn't often seen in the northern hemisphere, typically only becoming visible between March and July. "Like you can't even see it here," she said, pointing to the simulated sky. "You can't even see Virgo and Virgo is further north than Corvus."

"I think this is supposed to be what's in the sky tonight," Maggie said. "Do you want me to see if I can change it?"

"Would that mean you would have to move?" Alex asked.

"Probably," she answered.

"Then no," Alex replied. "This is perfect." She sighed happily. "So Orion's your favourite?"

"Yeah," Maggie said. "Always made me feel… I don't know… safe, maybe? Whenever I saw it." She looked at the horizon. "You can see it's almost up," she said.

"Mmm, I see it," Alex murmured, spotting the tell-tale three stars that formed Orion's belt. She scanned the sky. "This is amazing," she said, softly.

"I used to come here a lot after I first moved to the city," Maggie admitted. "I missed the big sky too much."

"Ahhh, so that's how you know Stef?"

Maggie nodded. "She's the director of the planetarium." She chuckled. "I was coming here three, four times a week for a few weeks before she introduced herself and offered me a season pass for a lot less money."

Alex nuzzled Maggie's neck, gently. "That was nice of her."

"It was."

She paused, wondering how to phrase the question that was on the tip of her tongue.

"And no, Danvers, we didn't date. She's straight. Like, actually straight," Maggie teased. "We've been friends ever since. When I called her to set up tonight, she gave me hell for not returning her texts for the last few weeks. I explained I had been otherwise occupied."

Alex laughed. "Sorry."

"No need to be sorry. I've really liked hanging out with you," Maggie said.

"Even when I got awkward and weird about you thinking I was gay?" Alex asked.

"Even then."

"Even when I kissed you?"

Maggie laughed. "Even then."

"Even when I told you we weren't friends?" she asked.

Maggie turned her head and kissed the top of Alex's head. "Even then."

"Really? Then?"

"You were hurting," she said. "And that was because of me. And I should have been more considerate of you and your feelings," Maggie said, gently.

"I'm glad you tracked me down at Kara's."

Maggie chuckled. "At that point, I was just glad to find you. I tried your place, the bar, the DEO… Kara's was my last hope."

Alex smiled. "I didn't realize you'd been running around the city looking for me."

"Well, I didn't know if you were going to answer a call or even read a text," she said. "I figured it would be harder to tell me to fuck off in person," she joked.

"Maggie, when someone tells you that they can't imagine their life without you, your first instinct, no matter how hurt and angry you are, is not necessarily to tell them to fuck off."

"Good to know, Danvers, thanks for the tip," Maggie smiled. She paused for a moment. "So that was the key to getting you to let me back in?"

Alex nodded. "I'd been open and honest with you. You showed you could be open and honest with me when you told me that."

"I was scared," she admitted. "I didn't want to lose you. I also didn't want to hurt you."

"Well, I think the last week or so has gone pretty well," Alex declared.

"Danvers, I got shot," the detective deadpanned.

Alex grinned. "But I got to stitch you up. And you're fine. And I got to help you get undressed…"

Maggie laughed.

"And then you had time to realize that life is too short and we should kiss the girls we wanna kiss, so, really, you getting shot worked out pretty well for me," Alex asserted.

"For both of us," Maggie agreed, bending down and kissing Alex gently again.

"How's your shoulder, anyways?" Alex asked, after Maggie had pulled away once more.

"It's good," she said. "A bit stiff and sore, but a lot better than it was."

"And you're still taking your antibiotics?" she asked.

"Yes, Dr. Danvers," she smiled.

"Good," she smiled back.

They sat quietly, stealing the occasional kiss, pointing out the odd star or planet, for the next little while, as they drank a little bit more champagne, before Stef knocked on the door to let them know it was ten. With great reluctance, they got up and left the auditorium. They bid goodnight to Stef, Maggie telling her she owed her big time, once again, and headed out to Maggie's car. Maggie opened the door for Alex again, who was starting to get used to this kind of treatment, since she knew it came out of Maggie caring for her, not out of some need to impress her.

They drove back to Alex's apartment building, chatting quietly, holding hands over the center console of the car. All too soon, they pulled up to Alex's building.

"Well, thank you," Maggie said, "for a truly wonderful evening."

Alex smiled back. "It's me who should be thanking you. That was the best date I've ever been on, for sure."

Maggie smiled and leaned in, kissing Alex gently.

She whimpered as Maggie pulled away too soon. "Do you want to come up for a bit?" she asked, eyes still closed, still able to feel the ghost of Maggie's lips on hers. She opened her eyes. "Not for… you know… just…"

Maggie smiled. "I know. And, really, I would love to, Alex, but let's take it slow, yeah?"

Alex saw the real regret on Maggie's face. She sighed. "I guess." She laughed. "When do we get to make out in the car like a couple of teenagers?" she asked, grinning.

"Not on our first date," Maggie replied, dimples showing.

"Rats."

She chuckled. "Danvers… Alex… we've got time. We've got time to do this right. You're going to want to talk to Kara about this, you're going to want to process this, you're going to want to think about stuff."

"I guess," she repeated. "But right now, I just want to kiss you again."

"I think that can be arranged," Maggie replied, leaning forward again. They kissed more firmly this time, Alex's hands tangled in Maggie's hair while Maggie's hands cupped her face so gently. When Maggie swiped her tongue along Alex's lower lip, Alex groaned softly and leaned into the kiss.

It was Alex who pulled back after a couple of minutes, sitting back against the seat, hard, breathing heavily. "Okay, so I'm gonna go or I'm never going to get out of this car," she grinned.

Maggie laughed. "Goodnight, Danvers."

Alex looked at her, beaming, then leaned over for one more quick peck. "Text me when you get home?"

"Will do."

She smiled again, opened the door and got out, pushing the door shut. She waved to Maggie as she entered the building. The detective had obviously stayed to ensure she got in okay. Alex appreciated the gesture, even though it wasn't remotely necessary.

Alex got upstairs to her apartment, shut the door behind her and leaned against it, sighing happily.

"So that's what a real date is like," she muttered to herself. Then, she remembered. She dug her phone out of her pocket and dialed Maggie's number.

"Miss me already, Danvers?" Maggie asked in a tone that allowed Alex to practically see the grin on the other woman's face.

Alex laughed. "Yes, but I'm actually calling to ask you out on a date."

"Oh, you sneak," Maggie grumbled.

"How's Wednesday night?" she asked, moving into her apartment and taking off her jacket, putting her purse on the counter.

"Wednesday is good. What are we doing?" the detective asked.

"That… is yet to be determined," grinned Alex. "I just wanted to book you and make it quite clear that our second date is my treat."

Maggie laughed. "All right, all right. Consider me booked," she agreed.

"Good," Alex grinned. "Thanks again for a wonderful evening, Maggie."

"You're very welcome," she replied.

"Okay. I'm going to get ready for bed and stuff. Don't forget to—"

"Text you when I get home, I know," Maggie replied. "It won't be long, Danvers."

"Okay," she smiled. "Drive safely."

"I will. Bye," Maggie said.

"Bye," she said, then hung up the phone. She was beaming and felt like she was floating and… why on earth hadn't Kara called her back yet? Maggie had been right. She definitely needed to enthuse to someone who _wasn't_ Maggie _about_ Maggie. She hoped Kara was okay, then snorted. "She's literally invulnerable, Alex," she muttered to herself. "Of course she's fine."

Later, when Alex was in bed, having texted briefly with Maggie to say goodnight, she sent her sister a text. "Hope you're okay. Text or call or even drop by when you get this, all right? The balcony door will be unlocked. Love you."

Alex put the phone down on her bedside table and rolled over in bed, curling up with one of her spare pillows. Within minutes, she was fast asleep, dreaming of watching the Northern Lights dance, Maggie by her side.


	2. The Second Date

"So you don't mind?" Alex asked Kara. They were sitting on Kara's couch, eating ice cream and watching Netflix, two empty pizza boxes resting on the coffee table in front of them.

"Mind? Are you kidding me? I'm more than happy to help out," her sister assured her.

She exhaled. "Thank you," she said.

"Of course." Kara paused. "I do get the leftovers, right?"

Alex chuckled. "Yes, you do."

Her sister beamed. "Sweet."

"Well," she commented, "that was easier than I thought. I didn't even have to guilt you into doing it."

"Oh no," muttered Kara. "Here it comes…"

Alex took a moment to let the ice cream melt in her mouth before swallowing. "I mean, seriously, you go off to a parallel universe and you don't tell me, you don't call, you don't even text…"

"I'm practically indestructible, Alex," Kara said. "Be reasonable!"

"Sure, but like, what if, what if kryptonite was a common element on that Earth? You know? What if the Kryptonians of that universe had tried to invade Earth and they'd beaten back the Kryptonians with kryptonite? Or something else that makes you very destructible?"

She snickered. "Okay, one, as if Krypton would want to invade a primitive planet like Earth in any reality," she scoffed. "And two, don't make me laugh! Even with all the kryptonite in the universe, humans couldn't beat Kryptonians. Sorry. Never gonna happen."

Alex narrowed her eyes at her. "Fine, but you weren't invincible over there. You got mind controlled!"

Kara rolled her eyes. "It's not like Barry wasn't there. It was okay!"

"And that's another thing!" Alex said, stabbing the spoon in the air to make a point. "Who is this Barry guy anyway? I mean, sure, he helped you out with Livewire and Siobhan, Banshee, whatever she was calling herself, but what do you really know about him? He's human and he's fast. How is that remotely helpful? Is that the best they can do for superheroes over there?"

Kara sighed. "Alex, I'm sorry that I went to a parallel universe without you and without telling you about it first."

"Hmph," Alex murmured. "You'd better bring me along, next time." She had another spoonful of ice cream. "Someone's got to keep an eye out for you," she said, talking around the cold dessert that was melting in her mouth.

"Of course," she replied.

"Earth 38," Alex muttered. "And I suppose Barry's Earth is Earth 1?"

Kara nodded.

"That's pretty egotistical," she complained. "Like, who's to say we're not Earth 1?"

Kara opened her mouth and then paused, thinking. "That's a good point. I'll mention it to Barry and Cisco the next time we talk." She took another bite of ice cream. "In the meantime, I think you've chewed me out enough about running off to other universes without you, so can we get back to this episode of The Crown? Please?" She looked hopeful.

Alex sighed a sigh familiar to any older sibling. "Okay," she agreed, capitulating. "I just don't see why anyone wants to watch a series where all the major events are things you could have learned about in any 20th century history class."

"Because it's awesome," Kara responded, then held out her pint of ice cream. Alex took one last bite from hers and they exchanged the containers before Alex hit play, resuming the episode. She couldn't wait for them to be done with the season so that it was her turn to pick the next series they'd watch.

The next morning, Alex hopped out of bed, excited to start her day. It was Wednesday. That evening, she and Maggie would have their second date and she was really, really looking forward to it. After finalizing her plans for the date the night before while chatting with Kara, she felt pretty sure that she could at least match the lovely experience Maggie had provided her with on Sunday evening.

She grabbed her phone and went to the kitchen to make coffee. As the coffee maker began making her drink, Alex texted Maggie, even though it was only half-past six in the morning.

"Good morning, beautiful," she began. "I'm looking forward to tonight. I'll pick you up at your place at six and you'll want to wear something appropriate for riding on the back of my bike." She considered. "I'll also need to know if you have any food allergies or really strong food preferences, so let me know when you can." She smiled. "Can't wait to see you. xox!"

"God, exes and ohs in a text message," she muttered to herself, shaking her head. "I've got it and I've got it bad."

The day passed interminably slowly for Alex, just as the past Sunday had. Things were relatively quiet at work, for once, but that meant she was just doing stuff in the lab or with her colleagues or glancing at the clock or her watch or her phone and just willing time to move faster, though she did take an hour at lunch to prepare something for the coming evening.

Five o'clock finally hit and Alex was already changed into her civilian clothes and was out the door, on her way home. She took a shower, dried her hair and pulled on her favourite jeans. They were her favourites for a number of reasons, but, she decided, as she looked at her reflection in the mirror, her butt looked amazing in them. She paused in the process of dressing in order to quadruple-check the weather. As the forecast had confirmed for the last 24 hours, it was set to be unseasonably warm that last evening of November. That, combined with the partly cloudy sky, had cemented her plans.

Her stomach was flipping over itself with excitement at the prospect of not only seeing Maggie, but showing her a good time. She hoped, at any rate. She finished dressing, putting on a long-sleeved t-shirt, followed by a soft, flannel shirt she'd always been fond of, which had a grey plaid pattern. She slipped on her riding boots, put on her favourite leather jacket and took a previously-prepared backpack out of the front closet. She double-checked the contents and nodded in satisfaction before tossing her gun into it and swinging it on to her back. Then she grabbed her helmet, made sure her riding gloves were stashed inside, and headed to the garage.

She arrived at Maggie's at five to six and found Maggie already waiting for her in front of her building, holding her helmet in gloved hands, looking simultaneously hot and practical in jeans, boots and a leather jacket.

"Hey, pretty lady," she said, after coming to a stop and taking off her helmet.

"Hey," Maggie said, smiling. She took a couple of steps forward and leaned towards Alex, kissing her gently.

"Mmm," Alex hummed, happily. "Can I offer you a ride?" she grinned.

Maggie chuckled. "I don't normally ride someone else's bike, you know," she said, clambering on to the back of the Ducati. "But for you, Danvers? I'll make an exception." She settled herself and put her helmet on, wrapping her arms around Alex's waist.

"I'm a lucky lady," she commented, sliding her helmet back on. She revved the bike and they took off down the road, heading towards the outskirts of town.

It was an intimate experience, having Maggie hold on to her from behind. She'd had people ride the back of her bike before, on occasion. Kara had been a passenger before. So had various co-workers, like Vasquez. As they drove along, Alex could feel the warmth of the other woman's body seeping through the layers of leather. It felt so good, she acknowledged, to feel Maggie's strong arms around her waist, to feel her pressed against her back. She'd never felt so comfortable with someone riding with her. Usually, it was awkward, at best, to have someone clinging to her as they rode. With Maggie, it was different. With Maggie, _everything_ was different. She sighed happily as she navigated the bike up through the hills just outside of town.

About fifteen minutes after leaving Maggie's, Alex pulled off the main road and drove down a small dirt trail for a couple of minutes before stopping the bike where a number of large trees were located, effectively ending the trail. She took her helmet off and it was with true regret that she felt Maggie's arms leave her midsection to do the same.

Maggie looked around. "You're not going to, like, I don't know, kill me and leave my body here where no one will ever find it, are you?" she joked, getting off the bike.

She laughed. "Yes, that's it, my coming out has been one big ploy so that I could bring you here, to this remote spot, so that I can kill you for contaminating my crime scene."

Maggie snorted at that, as she peeled her gloves off and stuffed them in her jacket's pockets. "It was your guy who wasn't bagging stuff properly, remember?" She grinned and set her helmet down on the bike, strapping it to the seat. "But seriously, my curiosity is piqued, Danvers."

Alex strapped her own helmet down and pulled out the backpack from one of the saddlebags attached to the bike, then slung it over her shoulders. She tugged off her own gloves and tucked them into her helmet before extending her hand to Maggie. "C'mon," she said, with a smile.

Maggie took her hand and Alex felt a pleasant glow within her chest as the warm strength of Maggie's hand encircled her own, much like the night they'd infiltrated the fight club. She smiled happily and led the way through some of the underbrush that marked the end of the path.

After just a minute or so of tromping around through the bushes and branches, the two of them arrived at their destination. They were near the edge of a cliff, looking over the city, and had a clear view of the sun as it hung low in the sky, its rays streaming through the clouds in magnificent shades of orange, yellow and pink.

"Oh wow," breathed Maggie. "This is beautiful." She let go of Alex's hand and walked a few steps ahead, gazing at the masterpiece in the sky, pulling out her phone to take some photos.

Alex smiled and pulled out her phone while Maggie was occupied.

"All good?" she texted Kara. "We're here."

"Leaving now, sorry, there was a fire nearby. Had to help."

Alex sighed, quietly. Of course her sister had been waylaid by a disaster. Why wouldn't she be? "See you soon," she texted back. Then she looked up to see Maggie standing ahead of her, the setting sun casting her in silhouette. Alex took a quick picture of the view of the smaller woman against the gorgeous sky. It was quite the vision of beauty.

"Come on," she said, holding out her hand again.

Maggie turned. "We're not done here already, are we?" she asked. "It's so beautiful."

She smiled. "No, we're not."

The detective looked at her askance, but placed her hand into Alex's anyway.

Together, they walked down a rarely-used, overgrown path that led them to a very large boulder with a rather flat surface, with a view just as amazing as the cliff's edge which was above and behind them. Thanks to Alex's efforts earlier in the day, there was already a small campfire set up, though unlit, with some wood and kindling laid out nearby.

"Here we are," Alex said, breaking away from Maggie to set up the spot. She unpacked a couple of blankets from her backpack, spreading one out on top of the rock's surface, leaving the other one folded nearby.

Maggie sat down on the blanket and gazed out at the sky. "I love sunsets."

"Me too," Alex said, sitting herself down next to Maggie. She unzipped her jacket and slid it off, tossing it towards her backpack. She slipped her left arm around Maggie's waist and the other woman rested her head on Alex's left shoulder.

"Do you want to start the fire?" Maggie asked.

"Not yet, no," she replied, resting her head on Maggie's.

"Aren't you going to get cold?" she murmured.

Alex smiled. "Nah, I have a plan."

"A plan?"

"Give it a minute."

"Okay," Maggie chuckled.

For a moment, Alex let herself forget about everything except the spectacular sight in front of her and the woman at her side. She was fairly certain that she had never quite experienced a moment as perfect as that one. So it was with a little bit of reluctance that she pulled away from Maggie when she heard a very familiar _whoosh_.

Maggie frowned as Alex stood. "Where are you…" She turned. "Supergirl?" she asked, in disbelief.

"Detective," she nodded, with a friendly smile. "Agent Danvers," she said, "I believe you'll find everything in order here," she said, handing her two large brown paper bags.

"Thanks so much, Ka—, uh, _can't_ wait to dig into this," she said, hoping that her near-slip went unnoticed by Maggie. "Do you think you can do the thing…?" she asked, waving her hand in a circular motion to indicate the boulder.

"Yeah, I think so," she said. "Detective, if you wouldn't mind coming over here for a minute?"

Maggie was still somewhat visibly shocked at Supergirl's appearance. "Uh, okay," she said, getting up and standing close to Alex. "What's going on?"

Alex smiled. "Watch." She turned to her sister. "Careful with the blanket, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered back.

Together, Maggie and Alex watched as Kara's eyes glowed red and a light blue beam shot out of them, in a wide spread. The energy from the heat vision was being absorbed by the rock and it started getting warm, radiating the heat back out. After a few more moments, Kara stopped and nodded. "That should do it," she said.

"Perfect," Alex said. "Thanks."

"Of course, Agent Danvers," she replied. "Anything else?"

"Oh, yeah, actually, hold on," she said, and pulled a six-pack of beer bottles from the bottom of her backpack. "If you wouldn't mind?"

Kara took the six-pack from her and lightly breathed on it, chilling the bottles almost instantly. She placed the package down on the blanket.

"Great," Alex said. "Appreciate it."

"Anytime," Kara replied. "All right, I'll be on my way," she said. "Detective, it was a pleasure seeing you again."

"Uh, yeah, uh, likewise," Maggie stammered.

"Have a good night, you two," she said with a smile and wink before she flew off.

Alex sat herself back down on the blanket, which was toasty warm, thanks to the heated boulder beneath it. She eagerly started going through the two bags of food.

"Danvers?"

"Yeah?" she asked, pulling individually wrapped packages out of the bags and laying them down on the blanket.

"What the hell was that?" she asked, sitting down on the blanket next to Alex and taking off her jacket.

"What?"

"You got Supergirl to help you out with your date plans?" Maggie asked.

Alex looked up. "Yeah…"

"Supergirl?!"

She paused and realized her error. She wasn't really out at the DEO yet, although, come to think of it, Vasquez had shot her an interesting look the other day after she'd gotten back from bringing Maggie home, which had made Alex wonder if her discussion with Maggie had been overheard. Having Kara help out tonight, though, could potentially be a problem, she realized. From Maggie's perspective, Supergirl helping her out with a date would not exactly be a normal thing. She chewed her lip, wondering how best to navigate things. "We're friends," she shrugged.

"You came out to Supergirl? Really?"

She tried to keep her face neutral. "We've known each other for a long time," she said. "We work together pretty often. I just thought that she would be able to help me make the night a bit extra special," she shrugged. "She was cool with things."

Maggie just looked at her. "Are you actually saying that you told Supergirl that you were gay and you had a date with me and then you asked her if she would help you out?"

Alex looked sheepish. "Basically?" It wasn't entirely a lie, she reasoned to herself, although she felt a bit badly about keeping Kara's true identity from the detective.

Maggie shook her head. "Well, at least your life isn't boring, Danvers, I'll give you that. Man, I'm going to have to up my game," she grinned.

She looked over at Maggie. "Are you serious? Maggie, our first date was perfect. I'm just trying to meet the standard you already set," she confessed.

"Danvers… I took you to dinner and the planetarium," she scoffed. "You got an alien superhero to help you out. You just raised the bar. By a lot."

She laughed. "We'll agree to disagree, then," she said, as she finished unpacking the bags, "because I'm telling you, it wasn't a big deal". She sat back and looked at the spread. "Okay, so we have a great selection of gourmet sandwiches. Truffle BLT, buffalo chicken," she pointed, "turkey, meatball," she added. "No cheese on any of them, since you said you were lactose intolerant," Alex added. "Then over here," she pointed, "we have the sides. Fries, spicy fries, truffle fries and even roasted potato salad. Or, caesar salad," she indicated, "if we want to at least pretend to be healthy."

"Wow," Maggie said, looking at the vast amount of food packages across the blanket. "We are never going to be able to eat all of this."

"I'll bring Kara the leftovers," Alex smiled.

"Where did you, or, I guess, Supergirl, get all this?"

"From my favourite food truck," Alex answered.

"Oh?" she asked, interestedly. "Where is it? Maybe we can go there for lunch someday soon."

"Uh, that's not really likely," Alex grinned. "It's kind of in Chicago."

Maggie laughed. "You asked Supergirl to fly to Chicago to pick up food for your date with me?" She raised her hand to mimic setting a bar over her head. "Bar raised even higher, Danvers. And you should give _her_ the leftovers, never mind your sister."

She hid a smile as she reached for a bottle of beer and handed it to Maggie before taking one for herself. "That's a good idea," she noted.

Maggie ended up choosing the turkey sandwich, while Alex had the BLT and both elected to have the fries, with Alex taking the spicy ones and Maggie taking the regular ones. They ate slowly, chatting lightly while watching the sun set, its rays casting beautiful streaks across the sky.

"So how in the world did you find this place?" Maggie asked, gazing out at the colours.

Alex chuckled. "There may or may not be a secret DEO training facility a mile away."

Maggie snorted at that.

"Part of my training consisted of a lot of running and, one day, I ended up getting lost and found myself here." She shrugged. "I started coming here when I could, if only to just get a glimpse of the sunset." She popped a fry into her mouth. "It calms me," she said.

"Well, thank you for sharing it with me," Maggie responded, nudging Alex lightly with her elbow.

"Thank you for being someone I can share it with," she answered.

They finished eating and, once the sun had almost completely disappeared beneath the horizon, Alex started the small campfire off the edge of the blanket. The boulder was still quite warm, but Alex knew from experience that once the sun set completely, it would get really dark very quickly.

"I love firelight," they both said, in unison, once Alex was done, causing them both to laugh. Alex then grabbed the other blanket and folded it over so it could be used as a pillow. She placed it over to their left and laid down on it, her feet closest to the fire.

She propped herself up on her right elbow, facing Maggie. "Care to join me?" she asked, patting the spot next to her.

"I would," Maggie replied with a smile. She crawled over to where Alex was and settled herself next to her, propping herself up on her left elbow. "Hi, there," she said, softly.

"Hi," Alex grinned, before leaning forward and gently kissing her.

When they parted, just a couple of moments later, Alex's eyes were still closed. "I had no idea kissing could be so amazing," she breathed.

Maggie chuckled. "If you hadn't just come out, I'd take that as a compliment," she said.

Alex opened her eyes. "You should take it as one anyway."

Another chuckle. "Okay, I will," Maggie said, reaching out with her right hand to rest it lightly on Alex's hip. "You okay?"

"Okay? I'm amazing," she smiled, snagging another quick kiss.

"Well, yes, you are amazing," she grinned, "but I meant… are you okay? Adjusting to all this all right?"

Alex looked carefully at the other woman, trying to discern her actual meaning. "Oh," she said, seeing the concern in Maggie's eyes. "You mean am I going to freak out?"

The detective smiled. "That's one way of putting it," she admitted.

She considered. "You know, I wasn't kidding when we were talking at the DEO the other day." She looked at her, gazing into the brown eyes that gave away just a bit too much information about Maggie's history. Alex saw the remnants of hurt and pain in her gaze and quietly promised to herself that she'd try never to cause that kind of pain in the other woman. "I feel," she said, thinking, "like I get me. You know?" she asked. "Like… like this makes sense. That even just kissing you feels so amazing because, finally, I'm letting myself feel things that I've been avoiding for years." She brushed Maggie's cheek lightly with her thumb. "And it feels so good," she said, quietly. "So am I going to freak out? I don't think so."

Maggie gave her a small smile. "Just promise me that if you do freak out, you'll talk to me about it?"

Alex scoffed. "Of course." She leaned forward again and kissed Maggie lightly. "Same for you?"

That earned her a big grin. "I'm pretty sure I'm not going to freak out over dating you, Danvers."

"Well, I'm kind of new to this sort of thing," she said, "so tell me if I do anything wrong."

She laughed. "Well, so far, so good."

"Good," Alex smiled.

"So you came out to Supergirl," Maggie chuckled, shaking her head. "How was that? That must have been a little surreal."

"Oh, uh, yeah, a little weird," she said, "but her reaction was pretty great," she admitted.

"What was it?"

"Well, I'd just told her and then there was a report about some alien attacking someone downtown and I was supposed to deal with it. And then," she smiled, "I'll never forget what she said. She said 'I'll get the alien." Then she punched me lightly in the shoulder and then said 'You get the girl.'"

"Wait, this was today?"

Alex blinked, realizing she'd made another mistake. She'd gotten caught up in retelling the story and had forgotten that the getting the girl line had been Kara's way of telling her to go tell Maggie about her feelings. "Uh, yeah, yeah, it was today and I wasn't going to be able to meet you on time. Yeah."

Maggie smiled. "That's sweet of her."

Alex exhaled. "Yeah, definitely." She paused, feeling the need to guide the conversation elsewhere. "So what's your weirdest coming out story?"

She laughed. "Oh God, yeah, that's a story," she said, sitting up. "Another beer?"

"Sure," Alex said, sitting up as well.

Maggie reached over and handed her a beer bottle after popping its cap and then did the same for herself. "So, I was out to dinner with this cute girl," she said. "It was college. Her name was Liz. And I kind of liked her, but was pretty sure she was straight."

Alex sipped at her beer, pensively. "So what, she wore strappy sandals and dangly earrings?" she asked, smiling.

She laughed. "No, it was… more subtle than that, really. The way she dressed, I actually did think she was gay the second I first saw her." She shook her head. "Anyway, we were studying one day and then we were both hungry, so we went out to dinner at some restaurant that wasn't just a fast-food place," she explained. "We felt we deserved it after actually having been good at studying pretty much all afternoon. Most of our attempts to study together ended up with me laughing until I cried. Liz was hilarious."

Maggie paused to take a drink of her beer. "Now, even though I was pretty out, I wasn't screaming it from the rooftops," she said. "I like to make it clear, nowadays, early on, just so everyone's on the same page, but back then, I didn't always do that. And with Liz, somehow, we'd been friends for like, a couple of months, and I hadn't explicitly told her."

Alex nodded, remembering. "You told me the day after we met," she grinned.

"Well, we had also just run into my ex."

"A Roltikkon," Alex nodded. "Yeah, I remember. The whole encounter made quite the impression on me."

Maggie grinned. "Were you jealous even then, Danvers?" she asked, nudging Alex's arm with her own.

She took a sip of her beer. "Scandalized, definitely. Maybe a hint of jealousy?"

"Scandalized because she was a woman or because she was an alien?"

"Both," Alex confirmed. "Definitely both. Anyway," she gestured with the beer bottle, "you were saying."

"Right, yeah, so Liz and I were talking while waiting for our orders to arrive, just shooting the shit, and she made this comment about Velma from Scooby-Doo."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Velma. The one in the orange turtleneck and glasses, right?"

"That's her."

"What did she say?"

"I can't remember how we got to this point, but she was adamant that Velma was a lesbian."

Alex snorted. "Oh God."

"So I instantly said that there was no way Velma was a lesbian, and that's when the debate started. She had short hair, Liz said, but, I pointed out, Velma wore a skirt. And back and forth and back and forth and, throughout it all, I was painfully aware that I was absolutely going to have to come out to Liz and deal with the whole 'why didn't you tell me before?' question."

"Ooh," she said. "That's a thing?"

"It's a thing, sometimes," she affirmed. "Timing is everything. If you tell people too soon, sometimes people will complain that you're 'forcing your sexuality' on to them, which, I think, is bullshit. And then if you don't tell people soon enough, they'll feel hurt that you kept it from them." She rolled her eyes. "That's why I like to get it out as soon as possible."

"Gotcha," Alex said, wondering when she would feel comfortable enough to tell her co-workers, to tell Kara's group of friends.

"Anyway, so Liz is running out of steam with the argument," Maggie continued, "and I'm just on the verge of winning and then she says, and I'm quoting, here, 'Velma always has her sleeves pushed up.'"

"… so?" asked Alex.

Maggie grinned. "Look at me, Danvers."

Alex looked at her and realized that her black shirt had its sleeves rolled up. She thought about it. Maggie did, indeed, tend to wear her shirts with her sleeves rolled up or pushed up. "Wait… is that a gay thing?"

She laughed. "Well, I'm not a hundred percent sure that it is, but that day, I was wearing a shirt with its sleeves rolled up. Like today. And most days. So," she continued, "I looked down at my own bare arms and laughed out loud. Liz asked me what was so funny and I showed her my arms and said 'Well, I guess you win. Velma's a lesbian.'"

Alex chuckled. "So that's how you came out to her? She understood what you meant?"

"Oh, yeah, she was really smart. She understood exactly what I was saying and then she promptly fell over herself apologizing in case her strident arguments in favour of Velma's lesbianism was at all offensive," she smiled.

"Was it?" Alex asked.

Maggie shrugged. "I mean, we were talking about a fictional character," she said, "so that she was trying to find arguments to prove that a fictional character was a lesbian seemed fine to me. If she'd been applying those arguments to a real person, that's where I'd probably draw the line." She shook her head. "I think that people should label themselves and that others should respect those labels."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "Really? Because you're so good at that?"

The other woman tilted her head. "What do you mean? I try really hard to respect how other people label themselves."

"So what, I'm the exception?" She laughed. "You'd be surprised how many gay women have told you they're not gay?"

Maggie opened her mouth to argue and then shut it. "Okay, so there was an extenuating circumstance there."

Alex snorted. "Which was?" she asked, then took a sip of her beer.

"You were hot and I thought you were asking me out and so, yeah, I wanted you to be gay."

Alex nearly spewed her drink. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," she grinned. "I had honestly thought you were hitting on me and I wasn't, like, opposed to the idea or anything." She took a drink. "If you'll recall, I apologized right before you ended up coming out to me."

Alex nodded. "That's true," she agreed. "And, hey, you know, I don't think I ever said thank you."

"For?"

"For listening that night," she said. "You listened. You didn't force me to say the words, but you listened. And, and, I just… I just knew that you understood." She smiled. "You were a really good friend that night. So thank you."

"Anytime, Danvers," she replied, easily. She chuckled. "We've come a long way from that day, haven't we? You came out to your family, even to Supergirl, and now we're dating…"

"It's been an interesting couple of months," Alex admitted.

"Any regrets?" Maggie asked.

She snickered. "Oh, you mean apart from kissing you and then you shooting me down?" she grinned.

"Oh man," Maggie muttered. "Yes, apart from that and even then, you know now that it's just the situation I had concerns about, right?"

Alex smiled. "I know," she said, leaning over to kiss Maggie's cheek, softly. "I know." She sighed, contentedly, gazing into the fire. "No regrets. I mean, even telling Mom…" She shook her head.

"Oh, that reminds me," Maggie said, "what did you mean, she knew? About us?"

Alex swigged her beer. "Mom was suspicious that you kept playing pool with me, even though you're a terrible pool player." She shrugged. "I think she thought that indicated you were interested in me. I know, it's silly, but somehow, she knew."

"It's not all that silly, Danvers," Maggie said.

"Wait, what?"

"I mean, don't get me wrong, I like pool. I don't particularly love getting wrecked every single time I play," she grinned.

"You played pool with me because you liked me?" Alex was agog.

"Well, it was a nice way to unwind and we got to spend time together… Why wouldn't I want to play pool with you, despite the fact you kept beating me?"

She shook her head, smiling. "Wow, I can't believe I didn't catch on to that."

"One day, I'm going to win a set, Danvers, just you wait."

Alex scoffed. "As if. I'm the pool champ, remember?"

"You were the pool champ for that one night and you nearly lost," she retorted.

"Yeah, because you tried to get me drunk," she grinned, turning to face the smaller woman.

"And it nearly worked, too," she commented, turning to face Alex.

"There's a joke in here about Velma and meddling kids," the taller woman said, eyes flicking down to Maggie's lips.

"Probably," she agreed, closing the distance between them.

Alex never tired of the softness of the other woman's lips. They kissed gently, tenderly, delicately. The only noises around them were the crackles coming from the fire as the wood burned and crickets chirping nearby. After a few minutes, the kisses got deeper, more passionate. Alex felt Maggie shift and soon, they were both lying down, Maggie halfway on top of Alex, with her right hand holding on to Alex's left hip.

"Is this okay?" she breathed, pulling back a bit.

"Is what okay?" Alex asked, genuinely confused.

"Just… the intensity," Maggie replied.

Alex nodded. "Oh, yeah, it's definitely okay," she answered.

"Good," the other woman said, huskily, causing Alex's stomach to flip upside-down, in a good way. "Let me know if you want to stop," she whispered, before running her tongue along Alex's earlobe, causing Alex to shiver.

Maggie began kissing the right side of Alex's neck in earnest, kissing and nibbling the tender skin, licking at various spots and blowing gently, before returning to Alex's mouth, claiming it firmly. They kissed for what seemed like a pleasant eternity, Alex's left hand tangling in Maggie's hair, her right hand on Maggie's lower back, pulling the other woman closer. Then Maggie pulled back and nudged Alex's face to the right, allowing her to access the smooth expanse of the other side of her neck. As before, Maggie paid careful attention to the delicate skin, sucking lightly at her pulse point, nipping at her earlobe, which ripped a low groan from Alex.

"Like that, did you, Danvers?" Maggie whispered.

"Yeah," she replied, finding her mouth dry.

"Good," the other woman replied before continuing to trail kisses along her jawline.

For her part, Alex felt as though she were floating. She had never before felt so alive, as though she could feel every single molecule in her body as it responded to Maggie's ministrations. It was easily the most erotic experience of her life and it filled her with enough confidence to carefully roll the other woman over and attack her neck.

"Alex," she said, quietly, "you don't need to…"

"I want to," she said, simply, as she explored Maggie's neck with her lips. The skin was so soft, so warm. She tentatively licked a section of it and, as Maggie had done, blew on it lightly.

"Oh wow," Maggie sighed.

Smiling, Alex lightly pressed her teeth into the soft flesh and just barely scraped them across the other woman's skin, drawing a gasp. Emboldened, she kissed her way up and pulled Maggie's earlobe into her mouth and sucked lightly.

"You're playing with fire, Danvers," she rasped.

Alex pulled back. "Do you want me to stop?"

Maggie laughed. "No, I really don't, but maybe that's a sign that we should," she conceded.

Alex bent down and kissed Maggie gently, forcing herself to pull back after a moment. "This _has_ gotten a little more intense than I'd anticipated."

"You okay?" Maggie asked, gazing up at her.

"I'm okay," she said, kissing her lightly again. "I, uh… I've just, uh, never had a, a… a make-out session like that." It was true. She felt like she was on fire. All she wanted to do was kiss Maggie, hear her gasp like that again, feel Maggie's hands move across her body… ' _So this is really what being turned on is like,'_ she thought to herself.

As Maggie pushed herself up, Alex moved into a sitting position too. "This is all really new for you, I know," she said. "So as much as I want to continue…" She looked at Alex in the eye. "And I do want to continue," she smiled, "maybe we should just cool it a bit for tonight. You know, let yourself get used to the idea of making out with another woman." She paused. "I seem to recall you being pretty easily embarrassed when I credited practice with being able to unhook my bra with my left hand without looking."

Alex laughed, turning red. "Oh God."

Maggie nodded, grinning. "And that's probably why we should go slow, just to make sure you're okay with things." She leaned over and kissed Alex's cheek.

Alex sighed. "Yeah. I just… I'm 28 years old. I feel like I shouldn't need to stop to make sure I'm okay after something like this."

She nodded in understanding, rubbing Alex's back gently. "Be patient with yourself."

"Yeah," she said. "I'm trying. You're right. It's new. I've never…" She took a breath. "You know. Been, uh…"

"Been what?"

"You know," she replied.

"Been what, Alex?" she pressed.

"You're going to make me say it, aren't you?" Alex muttered. She sighed. "Been that turned on," she admitted, blushing.

"There ya go," Maggie said, patting her back gently. "Was that so hard to admit?"

"A little."

"Well," she said, lightly kissing Alex's temple, "it's important that we can communicate about this stuff."

Alex nodded, still a bit shy. "So, uh…" She cleared her throat. "Did that turn you on, too?"

The detective smiled. "Yes."

"Really?" Alex asked.

"Of course," she assured her. "You think my breathing is usually that irregular?" she grinned.

"Oh," Alex said. "So I did okay?"

"Danvers, you did perfectly." She punctuated it with a kiss to Alex's cheek.

She smiled at the praise. "All right, well, if we want to slow it down a bit, maybe it's time for the next part of our date."

"There's more?" Maggie asked.

Alex pulled her phone from her pocket and checked the time, surprised that it was already past nine. "Yeah," she said, "come on. We should pack up and get going."

The women packed up the leftover food and blankets together, then Alex dumped sand on the remnants of the campfire. She hauled her backpack onto her back and she and Maggie turned on their phones to work as flashlights to help them through the brush heading back to Alex's bike. Once there, they both put their jackets back on, packed everything into the saddlebags and then got on the bike.

Twenty minutes later, Alex stopped outside of their regular bar and, once again, felt a bit of regret as she felt Maggie's arms withdraw from her waist.

"What's this? Are you going to challenge me to pool again?" she teased.

"Nah, this is going to be a collaborative effort," Alex affirmed, as they strapped their helmets down and headed towards the entrance.

As they walked into the bar, they were assaulted with someone absolutely destroying Billy Joel's Piano Man from a corner of the bar where they'd set up a karaoke machine.

"Sing us a song you're the piano man

Sing us a song tonight

Well we're all in the mood for a melody

And you got us feeling all right"

Alex winced as he hit all the wrong notes and was relieved when he put the microphone down. She led Maggie to a table by the corner.

"Danvers, are we going to do karaoke?" she laughed.

"Yes, yes we are. It's fun and it's goofy," Alex said. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Just a water would be great," she said.

"Coming right up." Alex walked over to the bar and got two bottles of water for them before heading back to the table and watching another bar regular who ended up doing a reasonable job of singing Wonderwall by Oasis.

They perused the songbook while drinking their water and Alex was pleased by the selection available.

"No, Danvers," Maggie said, "I am not singing One Week to everyone in the bar," she said, when Alex pointed it out to her. "I'm not really good at singing."

"Well, we're going up there and we're doing a Barenaked Ladies song, so pick one," Alex grinned.

"Fine," Maggie said, taking the songbook and going up to talk to the person in charge. She nodded and handed it to him before getting up in front of a microphone. "Coming, Danvers?" she asked.

Alex grinned and got up with her. "What song are we doing?"

As if on cue, the opening bars to If I Had $1000000 came on. "Oh, okay," she grinned. "Who are you singing?"

"I'll sing Ed if you sing Steve?"

"Deal."

"If I had a million dollars," Maggie sang, tentatively, but sweetly.

"If I had a million dollars," Alex sang back.

"Well, I'd buy you a house."

"I would buy you a house.

"And if I had a million dollars," she sang, with more confidence.

"If I had a million dollars."

"I'd buy you furniture for your house."

"Maybe a nice chesterfield or an ottoman."

"And if I had a million dollars."

"If I had a million dollars."

"Well, I'd buy you a K-Car."

"A nice reliant automobile!"

"And if I had a million dollars."

"I'd buy your love," they sang together, smiling at one another.

They went through the whole song, Maggie singing more confidently throughout, going back and forth and always chiming in together for the chorus. The entire bar clapped for them, causing Maggie to blush fiercely. They sat back down at their table together and Maggie took the opportunity to encourage some of the other regulars to sing.

They weren't all terrible, but most were pretty bad, so Alex finally convinced Maggie to go back up and they performed One Week, with Maggie doing the rap sections flawlessly, of course. She quickly sat back down after that song, blushing again, while Alex went over to the operator of the machine and pointed out another one for him before going back to the microphone.

"What are you singing?" Maggie called out at her.

"You'll see," she grinned.

"I look straight in the window, try not to look below

Pretend I'm not up here, I try counting sheep

The sheep seem to shower off this office tower

It's 9.8 straight down I can't stop my knees

I wish I could fly

From this building

From this wall

And if I should try

Would you catch me if I fall?"

She looked down at Maggie, who was smiling at her, dimples out in full force, nodding, as if answering her question.

Alex smiled back, heart surging, and continued.

"My hands clench the squeegee, my secular rosary

Hang on to your wallet, hang on to your rings

I can't look below me, or something might throw me

I curse at the windstorms that October brings

I look in the boardroom; a modern pharaoh's tomb

I'd gladly swap places, if they care to dive

They're lined up at the window, peer down into limbo

They're frightened of jumping, in case they survive

I wish I could step from this scaffold

Onto soft green pastures, shopping malls, or bed

With my family and my pastor and my grandfather who's dead

I look straight in the mirror, I watch it come clearer

I look like a painter, behind all the grease

But paintings creating, and I'm just erasing

A crystal-clear canvas is my masterpiece."

She deliberately looked at Maggie and smiled as the song came to a close.

"I wish I could fly

From this building

From this wall

And if I should try

Would you catch me if I fall?

I wish I could fly

From this building

From this wall

And if I should try

Would you catch me if I fall?"

Her eyes locked with Maggie's for the last few lines.

"When I fall

When I fall

When I fall

When I fall."

The bar patrons applauded as she joined Maggie back at their table and took a swig of her water.

"Alex," Maggie said, "that was absolutely beautiful." She kissed her cheek, lightly.

"No more beautiful than you," she replied.

Maggie tilted her head at her. "You're smooth, Danvers," she grinned.

They left the bar shortly thereafter, once more getting on Alex's bike for the short drive to Maggie's. Maggie got off the motorcycle and pulled off her helmet, bracing it on her hip as Alex pulled off her own.

"I would love to invite you upstairs," she said, "but…"

"But it's been an eventful evening and I need time to process this," Alex finished. "Right?" she smiled.

"Exactly," the detective nodded. "So go, talk to Kara." She laughed. "Or Supergirl, or whoever!"

Alex grinned. "Yes, dear," she said with just a dash of sarcasm.

She quirked a smile at that. "Well," she said, "thank you, Alex, for a truly lovely evening," she said.

"Thank you for spending your evening with me," Alex replied.

Maggie leaned in and captured Alex's lips with her own, kissing her thoroughly, firmly, passionately. It was different from most of their relatively soft and gentle kisses, but Alex didn't mind. She lost herself in Maggie's mouth, feeling the other woman's hand at the back of her neck, pulling her closer. Finally, Maggie pulled away and Alex found herself actually whimpering at the lost contact.

"Oh God," she whispered, eyes still closed.

"Just something to keep you warm as you ride home, Danvers," Maggie grinned.

Alex opened her eyes and took a shaky breath. "You do such glorious things to me," she said, quietly.

She smiled again. "Text me when you're home."

"Of course," Alex replied. "Goodnight."

"Night," she said, then turned around and walked up the steps to her building. She was inside after another moment and turned to wave. Alex waved back and then sighed happily. She pulled out her phone and texted Kara.

"I need to talk about my date."

"Everything okay?" Kara answered immediately.

"Yeah," she replied, "I just need to talk it over. Meet me at my place in ten? I have tons of leftovers…"

"See you in 10!" came the reply, almost instantly. "And I would come over even without the leftovers. But they help. :D"

Alex laughed, certain that her sister had used her super speed to write back so quickly. With a smile, she tucked her phone away, put her helmet back on and headed home.

Later that night, after Kara had devoured every last remaining morsel of food from the food truck and after Alex had a goodnight text conversation with Maggie, she closed her eyes and started to fall asleep. It was while she was in that space between being awake and being asleep that she could almost feel Maggie's lips on hers, Maggie's hand at the back of her neck, the weight and warmth of the other woman's body against hers. She fell asleep quickly, a smile on her face.


	3. The Sixth Date

Alex was getting used to things, she decided. It was Wednesday and Wednesdays, as well as Saturdays, had become date nights. She smiled as she pulled on a dark grey button-up, playfully leaving an extra button open at the top of the shirt. Maggie would be there shortly, pizza in hand, and they were going to spend their sixth date together at Alex's. Their fifth date, the past Saturday night, had seen them having a fun time at the pinball bar Alex had suggested they go to ages ago. It had ended at Maggie's apartment, where things had gotten a little intense.

What had started out with a relatively innocent invitation to come up and chat some more had turned into gentle kisses on Maggie's couch. The gentle kisses, in turn, had gotten more heated. The heated kisses had led to the women being more physical than they had before, although it wasn't anything she hadn't previously experienced with boys.

She picked up a stray sweater and hung it up in the closet by the bed and considered. Things had been going well. Really well. Except… She sighed and sat on the bed, heavily. Except that, for all intents and purposes, she was basically a virgin all over again, which she found absolutely ridiculous and, at times, infuriating. She, Alex Danvers, seasoned, high-ranking DEO agent, who could withstand actual physical torture, was acting like a giddy, ridiculous teenager in her love life. She allowed herself to fall backwards on the bed and stared at the ceiling. It was absurd, wasn't it? Acting like a bewildered teenage girl after making out with Maggie? Blushing when Maggie complimented her? It all seemed preposterous.

She'd been through all this before, she had reasoned, so why, _why_ was it so difficult for her to take everything in stride? Throughout her entire life, she had never really seen the point of physical intimacy. Her past experiences had been significantly lacking in meaning as well as pleasure. By contrast, last Sunday's brunch had seen Alex babbling excitedly to Kara and probably going into more detail than her sister absolutely needed to hear about the physical side of her date with Maggie. Alex still wasn't entirely certain that there had actually been someone calling for help or if Kara had decided that she'd heard enough.

She exhaled, thinking about her past experiences some more. She'd just never enjoyed being physical with her past boyfriends. Anything remotely sexual with another person just never seemed to be as enjoyable as her explorations of her own body, so she'd figured that she just hadn't been wired that way. She had been sure that intimacy with others wasn't something she liked.

Of course, Maggie Sawyer had changed all of that. Alex found that she not only didn't mind the casual intimacy they shared, but that she longed for even more intimacy with the other woman. She wanted to feel Maggie's skin beneath her fingertips, she wanted to press her lips to hers, she wanted Maggie's scent in her nostrils… She had that, every Wednesday and Saturday, at least to an extent. Maggie had been very firm in wanting to spread out their date nights so that Alex could talk to Kara about things, allowing Alex every opportunity to ease into this new part of her life. The sisters talked a lot during Thursday's sister nights and Sunday's brunches and Alex had to admit that allowing her time to process the various, incremental progressions in dating Maggie was probably a good thing. On the one hand, she was appreciative of the other woman's patience and support. On the other hand, couldn't she just skip it? Couldn't she just jump in, headfirst, and stop being handled with kid gloves? She was a strong, independent woman and she had faced far scarier things than romance.

She covered her eyes with her forearm and sighed. Of course, she conceded, she had rarely faced anything as absolutely terrifying as her feelings. Over the last couple of weeks, as she and Maggie had started dating, as her feelings for the detective had deepened, as she'd found herself suddenly understanding desire and starting to crave physical contact with Maggie, she had started to cope with some old feelings. They were all bubbling up to the surface and it was easier than ever to remember how she'd felt that morning when she'd woken up to Vicky Donahue spooning her. It was almost effortless to relive the twin moments of contentment and panic she'd felt. She took a steadying breath, feeling moderately uneasy even at the thought of that morning from so many years ago, and moved her arm, opening her eyes again. "I should probably look her up at some point," she muttered to herself. "And apologize." Alex shivered at the idea. She was definitely not ready to face that part of her past, not yet.

There was a knock at the door and Alex took a deep breath. "Enough over-thinking. For now, at least," she muttered to herself and went to answer the door.

Maggie stood there, a box of pizza in hand and a DVD case in the other. "Hey, Danvers."

She smiled. "Hi," she answered, backing up and encouraging Maggie to enter with a wave of her hand.

She watched as Maggie walked in and placed the pizza box and DVD on the counter before taking off her black leather jacket and draping it over the back of one of the bar stools. She was radiant, Alex decided, as she shut the door. Maggie was wearing skinny black jeans and a long-sleeved, dark green, scoop-necked shirt with the sleeves pushed up to her elbows. The smaller woman smiled as she approached her and kissed her gently, before holding her close. "Hi."

"Hi," she said again, closing her eyes as she brought her arms up to hold her.

They stood like that for a moment, just enjoying the closeness of the other. It had been a couple of weeks since they'd started dating and Alex still had trouble believing that this was her life, that she wanted to hold someone else and be held like this. It was just a simple hug, but it was so different from everything she had previously experienced in her life, outside of Kara or her parents. Most of the boys, men, who had embraced her like this had typically caused her to feel trapped. She usually couldn't wait for the hug to be over. Oddly, standing there in Maggie's arms, Alex felt light and free, almost as though she were the sister who could fly.

"How was your day?" Maggie asked, face still pressed against Alex's shoulder.

"Long," Alex admitted. "When there's stuff going on, at least the days go by fast. When it's quiet like this, it's all paperwork and meetings and training." She kissed Maggie's forehead. "How about you?"

"Quiet in the science division, too," she said, "which also means paperwork." She pulled back and made a face. "Plus, it's really hard to concentrate on work on Wednesdays."

"Why?"

"Because I get to see you at the end of the day," she said, pushing herself up on her toes to gently kiss Alex.

"Oh," she said, blushing slightly, after Maggie pulled away.

Still smiling, Maggie went and picked up the DVD case. "Tonight's entertainment," she said, displaying it with a flourish.

"Imagine Me & You?" Alex asked, reaching out to look at it. "Oh my God, this is from 2005? Seriously?"

"Okay, it's silly and it's sappy and it's cute," Maggie admitted. "I know you're not a rom-com kinda girl, but seriously, this is something every lesbian has seen and if they haven't, they should."

Alex furrowed her brow and flipped the case over. "Why?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"I'll explain after the movie's over. I don't want to spoil it," Maggie said, heading to the kitchen to get some plates and napkins for the pizza.

"Hey, is this Cersei from Game of Thrones?" she asked, noticing Lena Headey's credit on the box.

"It sure is," Maggie replied.

"Wow, I barely recognize her on the cover."

"Well, it was more than ten years ago. Also, she's blonde on Game of Thrones."

"That's true," Alex agreed.

"Hey, you want to start a fire and pop the movie in? I'll bring the food out."

"Sure," she said. Alex looked up from the DVD case and saw Maggie completely at home in her kitchen. She decided she liked it.

The fire roared pleasantly in the fireplace, the pizza was just about gone and there were a couple of empty beer bottles on Alex's coffee table. She was laying on her back, Maggie curled up at her side, much like they had the evening when Maggie had first kissed her. The movie wasn't bad, so far, at least not for a romantic comedy, Alex concluded.

"Tell me about the lily," Rachel was saying on the screen.

"You don't want to know about the lily," Luce replied. Finally, Rachel wheedled it out of her.

"The lily means," she said, "the lily means, I dare you to love me." Luce crossed the street, leaving Rachel to wonder, for a moment, if it was a challenge coming from Luce herself.

"Ooh," Alex said, interestedly.

"Wait for it," Maggie said, patting Alex's stomach gently.

They stood outside Rachel's apartment's gate, in the cold chill of the evening, and Rachel nearly kissed Luce before pulling away and saying goodnight.

"Wow," Alex breathed.

"Right?" Maggie replied. "Infuriating, isn't it?"

She shook her head, reaching for the remote to pause the movie. "That's not what I meant."

"Oh?" Maggie asked, propping herself up on her elbow to be able to look at Alex as they spoke.

"I just… I know exactly how Rachel feels," she said.

"Hm," the other woman said, "how so?"

Alex sat up a bit, struggling to articulate what she was feeling. "I think that…" She shook her head and restarted. "I feel like Rachel is feeling this pull, you know? This magnetic pull, almost? One that she sort of understands, but maybe not really?"

"The unstoppable force," Maggie said, referencing the movie.

She considered, then nodded. "Yeah," she said. "Definitely the unstoppable force."

Maggie smiled. "This is feeling awfully familiar, isn't it, Danvers?"

She nodded again. "I was fine, you know? Fine. And then you showed up." She rolled her eyes at herself. "I didn't know what to do with what you were making me feel."

"You weren't fine before I came along, Danvers," she said, mildly.

"Okay, no, I wasn't fine… but I didn't _know_ I wasn't fine. I didn't know what I was missing, so I _thought_ I was fine," she argued. "Like Rachel." 

"Mmm," Maggie hummed, acknowledging the point.

"You know, the scene, earlier, where she had Luce put her arms around her? Like, I think she knew she wanted to be in Luce's arms," she said, words tumbling from her lips as they came to mind. "But I don't think she understands what's going on at that point." She turned to Maggie. "Does that make sense? Like, not even the scene at her sister's school really clued her in, not entirely." 

The other woman nodded.

"Even here, I don't know that she totally gets it, because she's been with Heck for years and it's always been fine, it's always been, like she said earlier, warm and comfortable. And now she's like, what the hell is going on?"

"Like you were."

"Like I was," she confirmed. "You know, I spent my whole adult life not really understanding the big deal about romance, about love, about, about, uh, physical intimacy."

"That's because you thought you were straight," Maggie quipped.

Alex chuckled. "Yes. And dating boys. Boys in high school, who kissed me because they wanted to kiss me, not because I wanted to kiss them." She sighed. "Boys who would get frustrated with me for saying no to various things. Boys who would, who would, ugh, grope at me awkwardly in the back of their parents' car." She made a face.

Maggie leaned over and kissed her gently. "I'm so sorry, Alex."

Shrugging, she took a breath. "So, I, I, you know, I _get_ Rachel. She found this guy, this nice guy. No wonder she stuck with him. Who wants to deal with guys buying you drinks and then expecting you to let them grind up against you on the dance floor? Guys who, who look at you, you know, at the end of the date, with the expectation, the _expectation_ , like they're _entitled_ to it, to _you_ , that you'll… that you'll invite them up?" She sighed. "And then, of course, the guys who seem nice enough and slowly wear you down until you finally decide, well, hey, maybe this time it won't be bad, and so you invite them up to your apartment." She exhaled. "And into your bed." She turned her head to gaze at the screen. "Of course Rachel stuck it out with Heck."

"Did you ever think about settling down with your own Heck?" Maggie asked, holding Alex's left hand in her right, lightly stroking the skin, letting Alex know it was okay, that she was there.

Alex scoffed. "Not really, no," she said. "There was a guy, Peter. Pete. He was a good guy, you know? Nice, charming, cute, really smart. I mean, he couldn't dance and he didn't like guns, but he seemed nice enough. We got along, you know? We had some great conversations. Long, rambling ones, about the meaning of life and the ethics of genetic engineering." She considered. "I probably could have settled for him."

"What happened?"

"Same thing that always happened," Alex admitted, turning back to Maggie. "I buried myself in work. I'd just started at the DEO and couldn't tell anyone, obviously, so I was spending just about all my time there. I… I used work as an excuse. I used to do that a lot."

"You used it with me," Maggie reminded her. "After I told you I was there for you as a friend and then didn't see you for ages."

She gave a small smile. "It's convenient," she confessed. "It's easy."

"Easier than dealing with things like feelings, right, Danvers?" Maggie teased.

"Oh God, so much easier," Alex laughed.

"So what happened with Pete?" she probed, gently.

She shrugged. "He accused me of not having my heart in the relationship. I couldn't disagree. But I felt bad, you know?" She paused, revisiting the moment in her mind's eye. "He cried. Then I cried because he was crying. And… even with that, even with the guilt I felt, it was just such a relief that he was out of my life."

Maggie nodded. "I understand."

"So I didn't date much after that. I was tired of it. Tired of the guys who just wanted in my pants, tired of the same looks from them, tired of the expectations… just tired, you know?"

"And now?"

Alex smiled brilliantly. "Now? I'm giddy. About everything. I think about you. A lot. I want to see you like, all the time," she laughed.

Maggie tilted her head. "The feeling's mutual, Danvers."

She stole a kiss. "Good." She looked back up at the screen. "You know, I can almost see the wheels in Rachel's head turning, trying to make sense of things, while, at the same time, she's just drawn to this girl. She just… She just needs to be close to her. That's why she imagined the part at the school."

Maggie quirked a grin. "And you? You needed to be close to me?"

"Uh, yeah," Alex said with an embarrassed chuckle. "What, you don't remember my lame attempts to hang out with you to celebrate singledom?"

Maggie laughed. "Oh God, that was hilarious."

"That's what I'm talking about," she said. "That desperate need I had to connect with you? That's what Rachel is feeling right there on the screen," she said, indicating the television with her left hand. "I mean, like, it was so dumb that I was so insistent and it was because what I was feeling was attraction and I had no idea." She rewound the scene on the television. "Watch. Watch her face." She hit play and they both watched carefully as Rachel gazed longingly at Luce before taking a couple of steps forward. Alex hit pause again. "There. Right there. She's not quite sure what she's feeling but she's just about to look at Luce's lips and decide that maybe that's the connection she's looking for."

She smiled. "I've watched this movie a dozen times and never quite saw this scene the way you did."

Alex reached out and lightly ran her thumb across Maggie's cheek. "You saw it from Luce's perspective. You wanted Rachel to kiss her."

The detective laughed. "Yeah, absolutely." She grinned. "So you're saying I'm Luce and you're Rachel?"

"That depends," Alex replied.

"On what?"

"On how the movie ends." She leaned over and kissed Maggie gently before hitting play again.

About forty minutes later, Alex laughed out loud as Rachel belted out the words "YOU'RE A WANKER, NUMBER NINE" at the top of her lungs. They watched as the girls found each other amidst the traffic and then ran through the gridlock to kiss each other thoroughly.

"Not bad," Alex said.

Maggie smiled. "There's a bit more."

They watched through the credits and Alex snorted at the scene with Heck on the plane. "Romantic comedies," she scoffed, turning off the television.

"I thought you liked it, Danvers," Maggie said, curling up next to Alex again, her right hand tracing patterns lightly on Alex's side, on top of her shirt.

"Mmm, that's nice," she said, closing her eyes and pulling the other woman a bit closer with her right arm. "The movie… Well, it was okay, it was just really predictable, I guess. Like all other rom-coms. The credits were way too sappy for me."

"I guess advertising it to you as a lesbian movie kind of spoiled it a bit," she conceded. "Still, now you know why Lena Headey and Piper Perabo are beloved by the lesbian community and now you know that number nine is a wanker."

She snorted again. "Does the number nine thing come up often?"

"One of my ex's friends had a t-shirt that had that phrase on it."

"No way," Alex laughed.

"Oh yeah. She loved the hell out of that shirt." She considered. "She got asked out a lot."

"I bet," she smiled. "Oh," she said, reopening her eyes, "why was this such an important movie to see?"

Maggie nodded. "Oh yeah," she said. "Basically, it has a happy ending."

Alex frowned. "And what, most don't?"

The other woman shook her head. "There are a couple of disturbing trends in lesbian representation in media."

"Really?"

"Yeah," the detective said. "I'm not going to spoil you with actual examples, but basically, lesbian characters either end up evil or dead. Occasionally pregnant, too, so they become non-sexual beings." She made a face. "Imagine Me & You is a good example of none of those happening. You could have replaced Luce with a guy and it would be essentially the same story."

"Ah, because no one really bats an eyelash except for Rachel's mom at the end?"

"Exactly," Maggie confirmed. "Well," she amended, "that and Rachel's moments of hesitation or confusion, like nearly kissing Luce, but just about any of those moments could easily be moments of hesitation about whether or not she wants to cheat on Heck."

"Right," Alex nodded, "I can see that." She considered. "So bad things happen to lesbians in media? Why?"

The other woman laughed. "Honestly, I don't know all the underlying reasons, but it probably has something to do with the fact that we live in a patriarchal, heterosexist society where the people putting out the media are generally rich white guys and guys are typically threatened by the existence of women who don't need a penis."

"Uh, you've given this some thought, have you?" Alex asked with just a hint of a mocking tone.

Maggie cleared her throat. "Maybe," she grinned. "One of my girlfriends in college was a media studies major, who was, for obvious reasons, really interested in queer theory."

"Ah."

"Hey, uh, speaking of that…"

"Speaking of your ex-girlfriend?" Alex raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah," she said. "Listen, I, I was kinda thinking…"

"About?" Alex asked, with a bit of trepidation.

"I was thinking about how things are going between us."

"What about how things are going between us?" she asked, suddenly nervous. Wasn't it going well? She had thought it was going well. Was Maggie finally running out of patience? Was she going to break up with her because they hadn't had sex yet? An old memory flashed through her mind, of an old boyfriend, Rick, who had preceded Pete. He had broken up with her three months into their relationship, after his constant complaints that they almost never had sex and that she didn't seem as invested as he was. She had been mildly surprised to discover she hadn't really cared that he'd dumped her, but now, the thought of Maggie doing the same thing, for the same reason, got her heart racing.

"Nothing bad," Maggie said, sitting up and pulling Alex into a sitting position, too.

Maggie's encouragement did little to calm her nerves and Alex looked at her askance. "Okay."

Maggie looked down and then back up. "I just… I mean… We've been out, you know, a few times and I, well, I think we've been having a good time. At least, uh, at least I'm having a good time and, you know, I hope you are, too."

"Yeah," she nodded, still not sure where Maggie was going with this, but at least she felt a little less panicky.

"Good," the detective smiled. "So, uh, I kind of…" She exhaled. "I know that we said we'd test things out a bit, see how things go." She took a breath. "But I've realized that I've already come to think of you as my girlfriend. And I hope that's not overstepping or anything, but—"

She was interrupted as Alex kissed her firmly. "Thank God," she said, pulling back, relief flooding her body.

"You too?" Maggie asked.

"I've basically, you know, thought of you as my girlfriend since the moment you kissed me," Alex told her.

"Oh, well, okay, then. I guess that settles that," she smiled.

Alex giggled, too. "I have a girlfriend." She shook her head. "Wow."

"Wow?"

"Not only do I have a girlfriend," she said, pulling Maggie close, "but my girlfriend is kinda hot."

"Kinda hot? You really know how to charm a lady, Danvers."

"Extremely hot?" she tried. "Because you are, you know."

"That's better," she smiled. Maggie gently pushed Alex back down on to the couch and placed her hands on either side of Alex's torso before slowly lowering herself on top of her. "This okay?" she asked, softly.

Alex nodded.

Maggie moved and began kissing Alex, who felt her heart start to race again, for completely different reasons than before, as Maggie's tongue swiped along her lips.

They kissed softly and gently at first, before things began to get a bit more heated. Maggie's hands were sliding along her hip, teasing Alex's skin with her fingertips until Alex pulled the fabric of her shirt up herself and placed Maggie's hand directly on the curve of her waist.

"Eager, are we?" she whispered in Alex's ear.

In response, she captured the other woman's lips with her own and felt Maggie smiling into the kiss.

She wasn't sure how long they spent on the couch, but she knew that Maggie's thumbs had taken turns in grazing against the skin below her breasts for what seemed like forever, just south of her bra. It was driving her crazy.

"Take it off," she murmured.

"You're okay with that?"

"Take it off, Maggie," she repeated.

Together, they rolled over on the couch a bit, so they were both on their sides. Kissing Alex gently, Maggie's right hand slipped behind Alex's back and easily found the clasp, unlatching it quickly. Alex felt her hand come around to the front and gently skimmed the soft skin there.

"Enough teasing," Alex said, then moved to kiss and nibble at a spot on Maggie's neck she knew for a fact was rather sensitive.

"You sure?" Maggie asked.

Alex bit her neck a little harder in response, which spurred the detective into action. She felt the warmth of Maggie's hand slide underneath her loose bra and cup her breast fully, her thumb running lightly over her nipple.

"God," she breathed. It had never been like this with boys. If any guy touching her had left her feeling even a hundredth as good as she was feeling right now, she might well have settled for Pete or for Rick. But it had never felt like this. She had never felt so alive. 

In time, both women were topless and kissing each other, touching practically every inch of exposed skin. Alex was barely even thinking anymore. She was just feeling everything, drawing in everything about the experience, occasionally testing out what areas would make Maggie gasp or moan, while she found herself reacting to Maggie's own gentle touches and kisses.

As Alex explored Maggie's torso, she stopped near Maggie's right shoulder and she smiled. "I see my stitches are healing nicely," she said, quietly.

"Really, Danvers? You're going to stop _now_ to admire your handiwork?" Maggie complained, sitting up, slightly.

Keeping eye contact with the other woman, Alex deliberately licked the skin just below the injured area before blowing gently.

"Are you really going to complain about me exploring every single inch I can?" Alex countered.

Her girlfriend swallowed and shook her head. "No, no, you, uh, you carry on," she said, laying back down. "Explore all you like."

Eventually, after a pleasant eternity, Maggie pulled away, sitting up, breathless, leaving Alex laying on the couch, looking up at her. "You are… so beautiful," she whispered.

Maggie exhaled shakily. "Me? Danvers, you are something else."

"You okay?" Alex asked.

Her girlfriend — her _girlfriend_! — took another breath. "I, uh," she said, "I need a break."

Alex sat up, strangely not shy at all about her lack of clothing. "Everything all right? Did I do something wrong?" she asked.

Maggie shook her head as she looked Alex over, her eyes dark with desire, mouth slightly ajar. She licked her lips. "You didn't do anything wrong." She took a deep breath and exhaled. "More like everything right."

Alex smiled widely at the praise. "So…?"

She laughed. "So, I need a break because otherwise, I'm gonna f—" She cut herself off and cleared her throat. "I'm going to want to take you to bed and do all kinds of things to you and with you."

Alex blushed. "Oh. Uh, yeah, okay, we, uh, sure, yeah, we can take a break," she stammered.

"Water?" Maggie asked, getting up from the sofa.

"Sure," she replied, turning to watch the other woman head to the kitchen. She laughed as she saw Maggie reach for the glasses in the cupboard.

"What?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder.

"Just… if anyone had ever told me that I'd have a beautiful, half-naked woman in my kitchen, I would never have believed them," she admitted, gazing at Maggie.

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Danvers," she grinned, filling the glasses with cold water from the fridge's dispenser.

She returned to the couch with the water, handed Alex her glass and sat back down on the sofa next to her.

Water had never tasted so good, Alex decided. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was, how dry her mouth had gotten, how turned on she had been. She looked over at Maggie, gazing at her pensively.

"What is it?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"The first time a guy got my shirt off, I was sixteen years old. And, you know, like any girl that age, I was shy and embarrassed and it…" She sighed. "It seemed like it was more about turning him on than me, you know?" She shook her head. "I mean, I guess he tried…?" She chuckled. "But, God, holding your hand does more for me than my experience with that guy," she admitted.

Maggie smiled. "And this experience?"

Alex laughed. "I'm sitting here, on my couch, with a gorgeous woman who, by the way, is now my girlfriend, which is something else that's entirely amazing. And, and, like that's not enough, we're both topless and chatting happily, like nothing is weird! This whole experience is definitely a little surreal… but in a good way," she smiled.

"So that was… okay?"

"Maggie," Alex said, her voice dropping in pitch, "that was unbelievable." She felt her cheeks flush a bit. "And you said it was, uh, also good?"

She drained her glass of water. "Danvers, if I could bottle the way you make me feel, I'd be the richest person on the planet." She placed the glass on the coffee table and glanced at the clock. "I suppose I should get going," she said. "It's getting late."

Alex checked the time. "How the hell did it get to be 11:42?" she wondered, aloud.

"Time flies when you're having fun," Maggie grinned, picking her bra up from the floor. She slipped it on and found her shirt nearby.

Alex watched Maggie get dressed and then stand up. "Do you have to go?" she found herself asking.

Her girlfriend turned to face her. "Well, it's late and we both have work in the morning," she said.

She looked up at her. "I mean… you could stay."

Maggie's eyebrows raised. "Oh. Oh, I see," she said, sitting back down next to Alex.

"Like, if you wanted to," Alex said, softly, feeling her cheeks flush.

Maggie tilted her head at her. "Alex," she said, "Alex, I would love to stay over. I really, really, really would."

"But you're not going to," she concluded.

Maggie smiled kindly. "No, I'm not. If that's something you ever want me to do, with or without other… stuff… then we can certainly talk about it."

"Aren't we talking about it now?" Alex grinned, picking up her shirt off the ground and putting it on, not bothering to button it up.

"We are," she acknowledged, "but don't you think that you may not be in the right mindset to make a decision on this after how intense things got tonight?"

She pouted. "I don't care. I don't want you to go."

"Alexandra Caroline Danvers, are you really whining?"

She snorted. "You think that's my middle name? Really?"

"Oh, no, I didn't actually think it was. My new plan is to cycle through all kinds of names until I find the right one."

"Caroline?"

"It's as good a place to start as any," she shrugged. "Anyway, Alexandra Caroline Danvers, are you really going to whine at me?"

"Well, I was, but if you're going to call me _Alexandra_ all night, then you can go," Alex deadpanned.

Maggie exploded in laughter. "Oh God, you make me laugh, Danvers."

Alex grinned. "Are you sure you won't stay the night?" she asked, playfully.

"What, my invitation wasn't actually revoked?"

"Would you stay if it wasn't?" Alex challenged.

Maggie sighed. "As gorgeous as you are, as sexy as you are, as much as I want to stay, I think we both know I shouldn't."

Alex gave a large, exaggerated sigh. "Fine," she said, dragging the word out. She stood and pulled Maggie up. "Thank you for a lovely evening." She kissed her gently and they embraced, Maggie's hands sliding beneath the loose shirt and moving up Alex's bare back.

"You're making it very difficult for me to leave, Danvers, what with you being so warm and so soft," she murmured.

"Good," Alex smiled.

With a groan, Maggie pulled her hands down, placed them on Alex's hips, pushed herself up to steal another kiss from her girlfriend and then walked over to the breakfast bar to put on her jacket.

Alex turned and watched, enjoying the fact that she had such an effect on Maggie. She grinned wickedly. "So you're absolutely sure you won't stay?"

When Maggie turned to argue, Alex pulled her shirt open and nearly laughed out loud at Maggie's reaction.

"Danvers! That's not fair. Put those away!" she complained. "Cheater," she accused.

Alex shrugged. "Just wanted you to remember what you're missing out on," she said almost innocently, letting her shirt fall back in front of her breasts.

"Oh, believe me, I'm not gonna have any trouble remembering," Maggie said, true regret colouring her words.

"Better not."

Maggie took a breath. "Okay, see you Saturday?"

"Of course," she replied. "Text me when you get home?"

"Always." She walked over to the door, opened it and smiled at Alex. "Goodnight," she said.

"Night," Alex replied.

Then, Maggie was gone, closing the door behind her.

Alex locked the door behind her and turned, leaning backwards against the door, a huge smile on her face. This was definitely better than anything she'd ever experienced before, she acknowledged. And maybe it was okay that she took some time to enjoy it. After a moment or two of replaying the evening's events to herself, she reluctantly pushed herself off the door and headed to the washroom to get ready for bed.

She grabbed her phone from the coffee table once she'd changed, washed her face and brushed her teeth, noting that Maggie had already texted her.

"I'm home, Danvers, and I'll have you know that I'm already regretting not spending the night with you," it said.

Alex smiled as she crawled into bed and plugged the phone into the charger. She sat there in bed, cross-legged, thinking for a moment about how to respond to that. She went through a variety of options, but settled on the most sincere one.

"Good. ;) But honestly, I think you were right. So thank you for thinking things through for the both of us. And I'm sorry for teasing you." She hit send and leaned over to turn out the light. She was setting her alarm for the morning when Maggie replied.

"No need to apologize. I know I'm going to have some lovely dreams about my girlfriend tonight..."

Alex beamed. "Oh my God, I have a girlfriend," she giggled. "So will I," she promised. "Goodnight, Maggie."

"Goodnight, Alexandra Murgatroyd Danvers."

She snorted. "I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."

"All right, Alexandra Delilah Danvers."

"Maggie!" she replied, laughing out loud.

"Alexandra Florence Danvers?"

"Goodnight, Maggie."

":) G'night, Danvers."

She turned off the display and set the phone on the bedside table, ready to dream sweet dreams of her girlfriend.


	4. The Tenth Date

Standing in Maggie's living room, Alex could not believe her eyes. Her girlfriend stood there wearing a rather large hockey jersey that was predominantly red. Red. Which wasn't the primary colour of the National City Knights hockey team.

"Danvers, I'm disappointed in you," Maggie said, shaking her head.

"You're disappointed in me?" Alex questioned. "You're the one wearing the opposing team's colours!"

"Yeah, but it's the Montreal Canadiens," she said, indicating the crest on her jersey. "You can't blame someone for liking the Habs."

"The Habs?" Alex scoffed. "What the hell does that even mean?"

She rolled her eyes. "How do you not know this? Who do I have to yell at about your education?" she laughed. "It's short for _'habitants'_ ," she said, only struggling a bit with the French pronunciation.

Alex sighed. "I can't believe we're going to a game and you're going to cheer for the visitors."

"They're like… the Yankees of hockey," Maggie protested. "The greatest hockey team of all time! They have twenty-four Stanley Cups!"

"Yeah, and the Knights have, uh, zero. Try rooting for a team that needs your support!"

"No way, Danvers," Maggie said, pulling on a navy blue baseball hat emblazoned with the Canadiens logo. "I'm a Habs fan all the way." She walked into her kitchen and grabbed the tickets from under the Canadiens magnet on the fridge. "You ready?"

"Ready to watch the Knights kick your team's ass," Alex grinned.

"Just let them try," Maggie smiled back.

They drove to the arena in Maggie's car. Maggie spent the majority of the trip trying to explain to Alex why the Canadiens were the best team ever. Alex, in a Knights hoodie with her own Knights cap, wasn't having any of it.

"Look, it might be my first hockey game in person, but I know enough about the Knights to know that they're ahead in the standings."

Maggie snorted. "Only because their division is weak. The Atlantic division is much more competitive."

"Whatever," Alex scoffed. She considered. "Want to make this interesting?"

"What, like a bet?" Maggie asked, as she backed into a parking spot.

"Yeah, like a bet."

"All right, name your stakes."

"If the Knights win, you have to wear my Knights hoodie whenever I see you for two weeks."

"Oh, gross, Danvers," she complained. "Don't get me wrong, you're cute as hell in it, but I will go to my grave before I wear another team's colours."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine, Maggie, if the Knights win, you have to ride with me on my bike for the next two weeks, whenever we go out."

"Danvers, I know I've done it before, but I am not going to make a habit of riding bitch on your bike."

"It's that or the hoodie."

"Shit," she said, quietly. "Okay, fine. Fine. If the Knights win, I'll wear your hoodie for two weeks." She made a face. "But if the Habs win, you have to wear my jersey for two weeks."

Alex snorted. "Absolutely not. Out of the question. There is no power on this earth that will make me wear that monstrosity."

"Monstrosity?! You're referring to the legendary hockey sweater of the glorious Canadiens?"

"You heard me."

"Fine. Then you have to eat a whole pint of vegan ice cream," Maggie declared.

"Not this again," Alex said, letting her head fall back against the headrest.

"It's that or the jersey."

"Ugh," she muttered, "fine. The ice cream."

"Deal." Maggie stuck out her right hand and Alex reluctantly shook it, hoping that the Knights could pull off a win. Alex Danvers would do a lot in order to avoid vegan ice cream.

They walked into the arena and Alex was astounded by the number of red sweaters surrounding her. Surprisingly, wearing the home team's colours, she seemed to be in the minority. Meanwhile, Maggie high-fived and smiled at other Montreal fans as they walked through the wide corridors of the arena.

"Do you even know any of those people?" Alex asked.

Maggie snorted. "No, but if you're Habs fans, it kind of transcends everything," she grinned.

"Yeah, okay, whatever," Alex scoffed.

"You're just jealous because we outnumber you," Maggie laughed. Not waiting for Alex's glare, she grabbed her girlfriend's hand and pulled her through the crowd towards the stands.

As they walked through the entryway, Alex's eyes widened, in awe at the sheer size of the arena. There were thousands of seats, on multiple levels. The scoreboard was massive and had enormous screens on each of its four sides. Then, there was the ice. It was gleaming bright white, and many, many players were skating around, dozens of pucks in play. The air was just this side of chilly and Alex was grateful for her hoodie.

"Shit, they've already started warming up! C'mon, Danvers!"

Alex chased after Maggie, running down the stairs all the way to ice level. By the time she caught up, Maggie was already taking tons of photos of the Montreal players through the glass.

"Oh my God," Alex breathed. "These guys are huge!"

Maggie nodded. "They don't look this big on TV."

"Wow," she said. Then she snorted. "Except that guy," she said, indicating #41. "Byron?"

Her girlfriend laughed. "Yeah, he's not big. Neither's 51, David Desharnais, or 11, Brendan Gallagher," she said pointing them out. All three of them looked particularly small when standing next to some of the larger players.

"So all the opposing team has to do is check them a lot, right? Hit them?"

Maggie laughed. "Gotta catch them, first! They all skate pretty quickly because they're so small."

They spent another few minutes watching the warm-up, with Alex snapping photos of Maggie with different players standing near her at the glass. When the siren sounded, signalling the end of the warm-up period, the players returned to their dressing rooms and an ice maintenance worker came out to pick up the pucks.

Alex turned almost as red as a Canadiens jersey when Maggie banged on the glass to get his attention.

"Hey, can my girlfriend and I please get a practice puck or two?" she asked, smiling ingratiatingly.

The older man looked at them both. "Whoever's team wins gets a game puck."

Maggie beamed. "Awesome. Thank you!" she called.

"I cannot believe you just did that," Alex muttered.

"C'mon, Danvers, get into it!" she laughed. "You hungry?"

"Definitely, yeah."

"Let's grab some food before the game starts, then," she said, leading Alex back up the stairs.

Minutes later, they returned with slices of pizza and over-priced beers in hand. Their seats were at ice level, right next to the Montreal Canadiens' bench.

"These seats must have cost a fortune," Alex said, as they sat themselves down and began to eat.

"They come to National City once a year," Maggie responded, shrugging. "Why not get the best seats available?"

Alex nodded, chewing. "How much do I owe you?"

"Nothing, Danvers, it's my treat."

"Maggie, this is like, what, a couple hundred dollars per seat? Be reasonable."

"I already had the tickets. I bought them for myself last summer."

Alex looked over at her. "Who were you planning to take?"

Maggie shrugged, somewhat uncomfortably.

"Oh," Alex said, understanding. "Your ex."

"Not, uh, not that ex."

Alex frowned. "Darla?"

Maggie laughed. "Not her either."

"Oh." Alex cleared her throat. "We, uh, we haven't really, you know, talked too much about… that stuff."

Maggie turned to her. "You're right. We haven't. But, uh… Maybe not right now? Maybe some other time? You know, maybe when we're at my place, while you eat that pint of vegan ice cream?"

Alex snorted. "First of all, the Knights are going to win and, second of all, you're changing the subject."

Maggie took a swig of her beer. "Danvers, we're at a hockey game. If you want to hear all about my exes, we can talk about that, I promise. I just don't think you - or anyone else here, really - wants to hear all about my past love life while we try to watch the game."

Alex looked at her askance. "Okay."

Maggie looked back at her. "Look, Alex, I'm down for that talk. I promise. Just not when we're sitting in the front row at a Habs game."

"I'm holding you to that," she said, smiling.

"Okay," she replied, returning the smile.

The game was extremely fast from their ice-level seats. She'd watched a few games on television, but the change in perspective made her realize there wasn't much time to make decisions with the puck.

It was somewhere in the second period when a rather large Knights' defensemen slashed one of the smaller Canadiens players right across his hands, causing him to fall to the ice. Alex barely noticed it until she realized that the player wasn't getting up. She turned to Maggie, who had leaned forward, looking worried. A chorus of boos rained down from the Canadiens fans in the stands. From their seats near the visitor's bench, she was able to see the obvious pain the player was in as he struggled to get to his feet, clutching his left hand to his chest, before managing to skate to the bench for medical attention.

Maggie, of course, took exception to the slash, particularly as no penalty was called on the play, and began screaming bloody murder at the officials.

Alex was actually quite impressed with her vocabulary and the strength of her voice as she screamed the abuse at the on-ice officials. When she finally sat down, at least thirty seconds later, she slumped in her seat angrily, arms folded across her chest.

And then, a Knights fan, sitting just a row back and a few seats over, stood up and called out at her.

"Hey lady, I don't know how y'all do it up thar in Canada," he drawled rather drunkenly, "but down here, we kill people fer less."

Alex was halfway out of her seat to go off on the guy when Maggie stood up, turned around and flashed her badge. "NCPD, asshole. You wanna threaten a cop again, or are you going to sit down, shut up and watch the rest of the game?"

His buddy hauled him down into his seat. "Shut the fuck up, Mikey," he said, angrily, to his friend. "Sorry, officer, I'll make sure he keeps his mouth shut."

"That's 'detective'," she corrected him, sharply. Then Maggie turned around and sat back down, fuming. "Assholes," she breathed.

"You want me to have Supergirl strand him on a deserted island somewhere?" Alex asked, hoping to get a smile.

"He's not worth the effort." She took her hat off and ran her fingers through her hair, then folded her arms across her chest and stared out at the ice.

"Hey," Alex said, gently, "hey, it's okay."

"Gallagher's hand is probably broken. There's no penalty on the play, which is bullshit. And then that asshole thinks he can threaten me?" She took a breath. "I'm sorry," she said, exhaling, visibly trying to calm herself.

Alex nodded. "I get it." She looked out at the ice. "Who was the guy on the Knights who hit your guy?"

"Petrov," Maggie growled.

Alex smiled. "Petrov. Got it."

It took a few more minutes, but Alex finally saw Petrov get back on the ice and the players grouped up nearby for a faceoff. Alex stood up and took a deep breath. "YOU'RE A WANKER, NUMBER NINETEEN!" she bellowed. Given how close they were to the ice, she probably didn't have to shout that loudly, but the look of confusion from all ten players and the linesmen was worth it, particularly since it got Maggie to double over with laughter in her seat.

Pleased with herself, Alex sat back down and clasped her hands across her stomach as she slouched in the seat, putting her feet up against the boards.

Maggie finally stopped laughing and, still grinning, looked over at Alex. "You're kind of the best, Danvers, did you know that?"

"I've been told that, on occasion," she smiled.

"I needed that," Maggie said, sincerely. "Thank you." She leaned over and kissed Alex's cheek lightly.

"What, a kiss on the cheek? That's all I get for betraying my team?" she groused in mock-outrage.

"Wait until I get you home," Maggie promised in a low voice, before returning her attention to the game.

Alex swallowed, reddening at the thoughts that sprung to mind.

The game ended in a shoot-out, with the Montreal Canadiens beating the National City Knights by a score of 4-3, despite being a player short. It came down to the very last shot, with all three Knights players having missed the opportunity to score on Montreal's Carey Price, leading half the arena to chant "CAREY, CAREY!" in support of the goaltender. Much to Alex's dismay, the Montreal captain, Max Pacioretty, then scored against the Knights goaltender, winning the game. At least half of the fans in the arena, Maggie included, jumped to their feet, screaming with joy, while Alex slumped in her seat.

"GO HABS GO!" Maggie chanted, banging on the glass in time with the chant.

Eventually, the cheering died down after the announcement of the three stars of the game, and Maggie saw the maintenance worker head towards them.

"For the winner," he called out as he tossed a puck over the glass.

"Thank you!" Maggie beamed. Then, as she inspected the puck, she gasped and looked back up. "You got it signed by Pacioretty!?"

He smiled back at her. "Habs fans have to stick together," he winked, then headed back towards the interior of the rink.

"Thank you!" she called, again. She was practically glowing as she grabbed a rather sullen-looking Alex by the hand and pulled her to her feet. "Danvers, you look like I kicked your puppy," she said. "I didn't know you cared about the game so much."

She shook her head. "Oh, it's not the game."

"Then what?"

"The vegan ice cream," she admitted, making a face.

Maggie threw her head back and laughed. "Because you are the best girlfriend ever, I won't hold you to it," she said, lifting herself to her tiptoes to snag a kiss. "This time."

"Really?"

"You did call Petrov a wanker," she shrugged. "That counts for something."

Alex smiled, shyly. "I thought I was going to get a different kind of reward for that."

Maggie's smile turned predatory. "Oh, don't you worry," she reassured her, "you'll get that kind, too."

She felt her stomach do a somersault. They hadn't been dating long enough for her to necessarily be able to take comments like that, particularly when accompanied by looks like that, in stride. She swallowed. She couldn't wait to get back to her place.

Maggie put her ballcap back on and pulled Alex along by the hand. They headed back up the stairs with Maggie pausing every few steps to high-five another Canadiens fan or to chant "GO HABS GO".

The parking lot was an absolute nightmare. Cars were everywhere and they were effectively boxed in their spot as more than 15,000 people tried to leave the arena at the same time. Alex felt some of the wind leave her sails as she looked around the lot, realizing that it would be quite some time before she and Maggie got back to her place. On the one hand, she was frustrated. Maggie had been great about making sure Alex had enough time to process the physical side of their relationship, but Alex felt she was ready to move forward. On the other hand, despite all of her reading about things, despite her general idea of how things were supposed to go, she was still nervous. She'd spent small pockets of time worrying about what might be expected of her, about how her performance might stack up against Maggie's exes, of which there seemed to be plenty. Alex chewed her lip. If she was being honest, she was also terrified that maybe this wasn't the answer to her intimacy issues. What if sex with Maggie was just as unremarkable as any other experience in her life? She doubted that would be an issue, given what she'd already experienced, but she wasn't _sure_.

"Doesn't look like we're gonna be able to move anytime soon," Maggie lamented, interrupting Alex's thoughts as she opened the passenger door for her.

Alex sighed as she got into Maggie's car. "Well, I could call Kara," she offered, imagining her sister lifting the car and bringing them to her place.

"What for?" asked Maggie, leaning against the door.

Alex cursed herself. "Oh, uh, you know, so, like, she could get a hold of, uh, Supergirl for us? And, like, she could just fly us out of here?" She was really going to have to talk to Kara about telling Maggie.

"Right, like Supergirl doesn't have better things to do than fly us to your place on a Saturday night," Maggie scoffed, shutting the door and walking around the front of the call.

Alex rolled her eyes at herself for the close call as she pulled her seat belt down across her chest.

Maggie opened her door, pulled her hat off and tossed it in the general direction of the backseat before getting in and putting on her own seat belt. She smiled at Alex. "So you're that eager to get home that you'd consider asking Supergirl to come pick us up? You're something else, Danvers."

Alex blushed lightly and shrugged, taking off her own hat and placing it on her lap. "Well, you know, I, uh, I- I don't know. Maybe she's just, you know, relaxing? Might not be a big deal?" She knew, of course, that Kara's plans for the evening included watching _House_. It was one of the shows Alex refused to watch with her, unable to tolerate the lack of realism in the medical drama without complaining about it, loudly. So, barring any kind of emergency, Alex would bet that Kara was on her third helping of pot stickers, her second pizza and on the fourth episode of the show that night, and would probably be free to help, if called upon.

"Right, well, relaxing or not, I'm pretty sure she still has better things to do than to fly us back to your place," Maggie said. She looked over at Alex. "Besides, I know you're friends and all, but do you really want Supergirl to put two and two together?"

"What do you mean?"

"The two of us. At your place. Past ten on a weekend. After having been out on a date...?"

Alex blushed at the implication. "Okay, yeah, we can probably do without her thinking…" She made an ineffectual gesture with her hand.

"Thinking what?" Maggie smiled.

"Thinking that you're, you know, uh, spending the night," Alex said.

"Am I?" she asked, mildly.

Alex swallowed. "Uh, I… maybe?" she stammered.

"No pressure," Maggie reassured her. "You just seemed pretty, uh, frustrated, I guess is the word I'd use, when I left to go home on Wednesday night."

Alex blushed a deep shade of red. She had never been so turned on in her entire life as she had been the other night, which is why she didn't _really_ think that sex with Maggie would be unremarkable. They'd spent a great deal of time on Alex's king-sized bed, mostly just kissing at first. As the night went on, clothes were pulled off, skin was exposed and caressed. By the end of the evening, Alex had found herself in just her underwear, Maggie topless but still in her jeans, touching, nuzzling, stroking, licking, biting… Alex had been close to combustion, her body writhing against Maggie's. And then Maggie had just stopped.

"Can you blame me?"

Maggie smiled. "Not at all."

"Stopping like that. Like, God, how could you even do that?" Alex asked.

Maggie laughed. "With great difficulty," she admitted. "But, like I said, it was important that we talk. And that we not make decisions in the heat of the moment."

"But right then? Maggie, I…" She exhaled, remembering how alive her body had felt, how right everything had been, how tantalizingly close she had been to release.

"You what, Danvers?" Maggie asked, in a low voice.

She cleared her throat. "I was going to… you know."

"Tell me," she pressed.

Alex swallowed, knowing that Maggie was trying to get her comfortable with talking about sex.

Alex knew exactly which word Maggie wanted her to say. She glanced to her left. Even in the relative darkness of the car, illuminated only by the dashboard and the light from the parking lot, she could see the dark brown eyes fixed on her, could see the hint of a smirk on Maggie's face, as though daring her to say the word. She looked away and took a breath.

"I was going to come, all right? Are you happy?" Alex said, feeling her face flush. She turned back to Maggie and was taken aback. She hadn't been prepared for the look on Maggie's face. Her eyes had darkened considerably and she was gazing at her with a hunger Alex hadn't quite seen yet.

"God, that was hot. You're hot," Maggie breathed.

Emboldened by the praise, Alex leaned over and brushed her lips across Maggie's earlobe. "You were going to make me come," she said, softly.

Maggie shut her eyes and exhaled, turning away and gripping the steering wheel as though to brace herself.

Alex sat back in her seat, satisfied.

"When we get to your place, you're in so much trouble," Maggie muttered.

"Awfully confident you're going to get invited up, aren't you?" Alex grinned.

Maggie looked over at her. "Alex."

Alex did her best to look innocent, which just earned her a glare.

Finally, they were able to pull out of the parking space and join the procession of cars that were attempting to exit the arena's parking lot.

"Seriously though," Maggie said after they'd merged into the traffic, "we don't have to do anything. You know that, right?" she asked, glancing at Alex.

She nodded. "I know. Thank you."

"Have you been giving our discussion from the other night any thought?" Maggie asked.

Alex laughed. "Uh, yes, yes I have."

"Anything you'd care to share?"

She felt herself blushing again. Maggie was referring to the fact that their discussion about sex had ended with Alex struggling with what sex meant to her, now that she was on the verge of becoming intimate with a woman. "I'm still having a bit of trouble," she admitted. "What, uh…" She paused to take a deep breath. "What, you know, would you… would you like to, uh, happen… if you spent the night?"

Maggie glanced over at Alex. "You mean…?"

"You know, uh," Alex cleared her throat, "physically speaking."

"Whatever you'd be comfortable with," she responded.

Alex's resulting sigh was tinged with a bit of disappointment.

"What? What is it?" Maggie asked.

She shrugged.

"Alex."

"I was… I don't know, maybe hoping that you…" She swallowed. "That you might have some ideas?"

Maggie cocked her head to the side. "Ideas?"

Alex nodded. "I'm, uh, you know, still new to all of this."

"You've been doing just fine so far," Maggie smiled.

She smiled back. "But, like, uh…" She cleared her throat again. "Like, okay, if you were going to spend the night… like, what would that… mean?"

Maggie advanced the car approximately two feet and then looked over at her. "Danvers, if you want to ask me something, just ask, okay?"

Thankful for the darkness, Alex took a breath. "I have a basic idea of what sex between two women is, but I don't realistically know what it means or what your expectations are, okay?"

"Oh," Maggie said. "Oh." She paused. "Okay. I get it."

"You do?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "Compulsive heterosexuality has taught you that sex is one thing and now your entire world view is changing."

Alex sighed in relief. "Yes. Exactly. And it's hard to really wrap my mind around it."

"Well, I mean, you've had sex before, right? With guys? So it's pretty much the same, only, you know, better," she grinned.

"It could hardly be worse," Alex said, making a face.

"That bad?"

She shrugged. "I, uh, never, uh…" She waved her hand in a vague gesture.

"Never what?"

Alex took a breath. "Never came," she said, deliberately, "with a guy."

"Never? Not ever? Not even while, uh, receiving oral sex?"

"Never," she asserted. "Not with another person. Ever."

"Oh man, now I'm _really_ sorry about the other night."

She laughed. "No reason to be sorry," she said. "You didn't know."

They advanced another foot or so. "Still, I'm sorry. I definitely wanted you to have the opportunity to think about things before things went any further, though."

"I get it," Alex said. "So what, uh… what's your view on that next step?"

Maggie nodded. "Well, what I've tended to use as a definition for myself is that sex is any act with the deliberate intention to, uh, cause orgasm, whether or not it results in it."

Alex frowned. "But that could be anything," she said.

Maggie shrugged as she advanced the car again. "Yeah, it includes oral sex, manual sex, various forms of stimulation, with or without penetration," she listed. "And more stuff."

"But see, for me, growing up, oral sex was that — oral sex. It was something you generally did before you got to the point of, well, actual sex," Alex griped.

"It's still a type of sex," Maggie pointed out.

"Right, but it's not the definitive type of sex," Alex countered.

"I'd argue that it's definitive to a lot of lesbians," Maggie grinned. She glanced over at Alex. "And that group does include you now, you know."

Alex opened her mouth to argue and then stopped, shutting it again. "Okay, so that's a fair point," she admitted. "I just wish there was one, definitive act, you know?"

"There's always strap-ons," Maggie offered, grinning.

"Oh God," Alex hid her face in her hands.

Maggie snickered. "Should we save that particular discussion for another time?"

Alex nodded, her face still hidden.

"Okay, so, honestly, if we ever get out of this godforsaken parking lot and we go back to your place tonight, what do you want to do?"

"Oh God," Alex muttered from behind her hands. She lifted her head back up. "I mean, uh, what we've done so far, obviously," she said.

Maggie shook her head. "That's not always obvious, but I'm glad to know that's okay. You just let me know if anything ever changes."

"Of course," Alex promised.

"Okay," Maggie nodded. "Anything else?"

"Well, I'd kinda like you to spend the night," she said, softly.

She smiled. "I'd kinda like that too, Danvers," she replied, reaching out and taking Alex's hand and pulling it to her mouth. She kissed the back of her hand before lowering it to the center console.

"And," Alex said, consciously lowering the pitch of her voice, "I definitely want you to make me come."

Maggie smirked and squeezed Alex's hand. "Funny, I definitely want to make you come, too," she murmured. "I've been thinking about it a lot, especially the last few days."

Alex blushed. "Really?"

"Really," she replied.

"So have I," she confessed. "And, uh, maybe," Alex said, just a little shyly, "maybe I'd like to try to make you come. Because I've been thinking about that, too."

Maggie swallowed. "Uh, yeah, that, uh, that would be nice," she admitted, "but not required, okay?"

"Okay," Alex agreed. She lightly stroked her thumb across the back of Maggie's hand. "Thank you," she said, "for always being so careful with me."

"Always, Danvers," she smiled.

"So," Alex said, "you're… gonna spend the night?"

"If we ever get the hell out of here."

It took them another fifteen minutes to get out to the actual road. Along the way to her place, Alex had the foresight to text Kara regarding their standing Sunday brunch.

 _Hey, just wanted to push brunch to one instead of ten if that's okay._

Kara's reply was swift. _Sure. Everything okay? How was the game?_

 _Everything's fine. Maggie's going to spend the night._

 _OMG!_

Alex snorted.

"What?" asked Maggie.

"I, uh," Alex cleared her throat, "I pushed brunch with Kara back to one in the afternoon and she asked why…"

"Oh," Maggie laughed. "I see."

"Her reaction was literally O M G."

Maggie grinned.

They arrived at Alex's building and Maggie parked the car but didn't turn off the engine. "You can change your mind at any time, okay?"

Alex laughed. "Maggie, I appreciate it and I appreciate you, but if you think I'm going to ask you to stop anything after the other night…"

"Okay, point taken," she acknowledged with a grin, "but you're in the driver's seat, all right?"

Alex nodded. "All right." She paused. "So you _will_ ride bitch, then?" she asked, innocently.

Maggie just shot her a look.

They walked into the building, holding hands. As they entered the elevator, Alex found her stomach was flipping upside down. It was an odd feeling, she decided, because it wasn't a single feeling, rather it was a mixture of a dozen or more. She was nervous, to be sure, but also strangely comfortable, which was probably a good thing. She was also feeling a little bit shy, but… She looked over at Maggie and smiled. She was also feeling desire, which was still so unfamiliar to her. She had never fully understood it. Until now. She squeezed Maggie's hand gently, causing Maggie to smile and lean over and kiss her lightly.

Once inside the apartment, Alex felt the nervousness fade a bit, surrounded by her things. Maggie being over was a familiar event. She was definitely feeling less nervous. Alex pulled off her hoodie and draped it over the armchair in the living room and dropped her hat on the seat of the chair. "I still can't believe you're such a huge Canadiens fan."

Maggie snorted and pulled off her red jersey, a black turtleneck beneath it. She went to the front closet and hung the jersey on a hanger before putting it away.

"A hanger? For a hockey jersey?"

"It's not _just_ a hockey jersey, Danvers," Maggie admonished, going to the fridge and pulling out two beers.

Alex wandered into the kitchen and grabbed one of the bottles. She clinked it against Maggie's. "You're lucky you're cute," she grinned.

"I'm lucky I'm a cop," she replied, "because I saw you getting ready to beat the crap out of that guy."

Alex took a swig from her bottle. "That guy," she muttered, "yeah, I was going to go full-on DEO Agent Danvers on him."

"My hero," Maggie smiled.

"You didn't need one, you handled that just fine."

"Still, it's nice to know you have my back."

"That's how this whole 'relationship' thing works, isn't it?" Alex grinned, leading Maggie to the couch in the living room. She sat down, taking another drink of her beer.

Maggie smiled and sat next to her. "I think so, yeah." She placed her beer on the coffee table and then put Alex's down, too. "If I'm remembering right, though, I owe you a reward for heckling your own player in the gayest possible way."

Alex beamed.

Maggie pressed her lips to Alex's and Alex couldn't help but release a small moan as she felt Maggie's tongue against her own.

It didn't take long for things to heat up. Alex found her confidence mounting as she drew a ragged breath from Maggie by sliding her hand beneath the turtleneck and grazed the underside of her breast with the tip of her thumb. Smiling to herself, Alex moved so that she was more or less on top of the other woman. She used her nose to push Maggie's face to one side and let her tongue tease Maggie's right earlobe as her right fingertips brushed across her girlfriend's breast, teasing the nipple lightly. Maggie inhaled sharply and kissed Alex's neck gently at that, allowing her tongue to glide across her skin, which just made Alex redouble her efforts in pleasuring Maggie.

After several pleasant moments on the couch, Alex finally pulled back. She stood and pulled Maggie up with her before leading her up the few stairs to her bed, stripping off her t-shirt as she did so. Maggie took the hint and pulled off her own turtleneck. The two of them climbed onto the bed and Alex reached for Maggie, peppering her chest with kisses down between her breasts, following a scattering of freckles. She pushed Maggie down, bending to kiss and nip at the soft skin at her stomach. She slipped her hand up Maggie's ribcage to palm at her breasts and pinch her nipples, still covered by her bra.

It amazed her, as she continued her explorations of her girlfriend's torso, listening for slight gasps and soft groans, how comfortable she was when she was with Maggie. Even here, on her bed, making out, the prospect of sex ahead of them, the idea of Maggie spending the night, she was still comfortable. Her earlier nervousness was mostly gone, though she attributed that to this being familiar territory. She was definitely looking forward to taking their relationship to the next level and hoped Maggie would guide her through the experience.

Alex crawled up Maggie's body, kissing along the same trail of freckles. She bit gently at a nipple through her girlfriend's bra, and lightly kissed the mostly-healed scar by her shoulder, before kissing up Maggie's neck and then finally pressing her lips against Maggie's. She shifted her body so her thigh was between Maggie's legs and then pushed against her with just a bit of pressure.

Maggie ripped her lips from Alex's. "Oh Alex," she moaned.

"That okay?"

"More than okay," Maggie replied, pushing back against Alex's thigh. She nipped at Alex's neck. "But I'm the one who's supposed to be rewarding you," she hummed.

"You want me to stop?" Alex grinned, pushing against her again.

" _Alex_ ," she gasped. "No, but…" She sat up and tried to flip them over. Alex let her and Maggie settled against her, pressing her own thigh against Alex. Maggie licked her earlobe before sucking at it. "I want to taste you," she whispered.

Alex exhaled, her eyes shutting as her stomach flipped. She found her hips moving of their own volition at just the suggestion of Maggie's mouth and lips and tongue and even teeth working in concert to drive her insane.

"Would that be okay, Alex?" Maggie asked, then sucked gently on her neck, pushing her thigh more firmly against Alex.

"Yes," she gasped, "yes, please, God, yes."

"I'm going to make you come," she murmured, causing a whimper. "With my tongue."

Maggie worked to undo Alex's jeans and Alex shimmied out of them, leaving her clad in just her bra and underwear.

"Pants off," she breathed, "I need to feel your skin on mine."

Maggie moved off the bed to quickly shuck her jeans before climbing back on. She covered Alex's body with her own and kissed her firmly, hungrily. "Tell me if anything doesn't feel good," she said, "or if you want me to stop."

"Don't stop," grinned Alex, luxuriating in the feel of Maggie's legs tangled against hers, Maggie's soft stomach rubbing against her own, their clothed breasts pressing against each other.

They kissed deeply and Alex reached up behind Maggie. With just a bit of trouble, she managed to unhook her bra. She arched her back and undid her own so Maggie could pull them both off and tossed them on the floor. Immediately, she bent down and took Alex's right nipple into her mouth, softly, at first, letting Alex get used to the sensation, before sucking on it firmly, almost to the point of pain, but not quite. She took Alex's left breast in her right hand and squeezed it, rubbing her thumb across the nipple.

"Maggie," Alex breathed.

Maggie moved back up and kissed Alex's mouth. "Just wait," she promised, sliding her weight to Alex's right side. She brought her right hand down from Alex's breast and caressed the soft skin between her rib and hip along her left side, before lightly tracing along the leg of Alex's underwear. They kissed breathlessly while Maggie teased the sensitive skin of Alex's upper and inner thighs before finally, finally, reaching down and cupping Alex through her underwear.

Alex inhaled sharply at the contact.

"Alex, you are so fucking wet for me," she rasped, her voice thick with desire.

Alex swallowed.

"I can't wait to taste you," she whispered.

All Alex could do in response was whimper, her hips moving again, trying to get more contact from the light touch of Maggie's hand.

Maggie licked Alex's neck lightly before pressing her lips to the same spot, slowly kissing up towards Alex's ear, while continuing to tease her with her hand, Alex whining softly, pleading with Maggie to give her the friction she needed.

A blaring tone came from the floor.

"What's that noise?" Alex asked, realizing at the same time that Maggie had stopped her ministrations.

"Oh no," Maggie groaned, burying her head in Alex's neck and shoulder. "No, no, no."

"What?"

"Fuck. I have to get that."

"You're kidding me."

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," muttered Maggie, pushing herself up and crawling across the bed. She dropped to her stomach and reached down to the floor for her pants, dragging them closer by a leg, then pulled her phone from a pocket. "Fuck," she swore, looking at the screen. "Sawyer," she said, answering and sitting up on the bed, to Alex's left.

"Shit," she said, sighing heavily. She looked over at Alex and bit her lip.

Alex, raised up on her elbows, looked over at her, giving her an inquisitive look.

Maggie looked genuinely pained as she sighed. "I'll be there in twenty."

Alex let herself fall back on to the bed.

"I was in bed, Taylor. I need a few, okay? Okay. See you then." Maggie disconnected the call and sighed heavily.

"You have to go in," Alex said, flatly.

She sighed again. "I have to go in. Alex, I'm so, _so_ sorry."

Alex sighed.

Maggie looked over at her. "It's an all-hands on deck situation," she said. "I'm sorry." Maggie made a face. "I was _so_ looking forward to that, too," she muttered.

"You think _you_ were looking forward to it?" Alex laughed weakly.

"Alex, I'm sorry," she said, "we'll have to raincheck it." She crawled over to her and kissed her soundly.

"It's okay," Alex replied with another sigh, "it's work. I get it. Tomorrow?" She paused. "Shit, no, I have a training thing. Monday?"

"Making up a shift and pulling a double," Maggie replied. "Tuesday?"

"Mmm, I have another training session with some new recruits, but maybe I can hand it off to Vasquez?"

"Well, Wednesday at the latest, right?" Maggie quirked a grin.

"Wednesday." Alex covered her eyes with her forearm. "That's so far away."

"Wednesday," Maggie repeated, kissing her gently. She clambered off the bed and looked down at Alex. "Wednesday, you are mine."

"Yours," Alex responded, watching with regret as Maggie pulled her clothes on. "I can't believe you're just going to leave me here in this… condition," she groused.

Maggie smirked as she tucked her shirt in. "I mean, just because I'm leaving doesn't mean you have to stop…" She grinned.

"Oh, believe me, I wasn't planning on stopping," she replied with a laugh and a bit of a blush.

"Danvers, you are so fucking hot," she murmured, walking back over to the bed and kissing Alex gently, before kneeling by the bed. "Will you show me?"

"Show…?" she asked.

"Show me what you like," Maggie whispered, covering Alex's right hand with her own.

"Oh," she breathed, nodding. She slowly moved her hand down to cup herself, Maggie mirroring her movements.

"You're still so wet for me, Alex," she rumbled.

She inhaled sharply. "God, I wanted you to taste me," she whispered, as she moved her fingers gently in a circle around her clit, over her underwear, which were saturated with the evidence of her arousal.

"Just like that, Alex," Maggie encouraged her. "Show me."

It felt good, but it wasn't enough. Any shyness she might have been feeling was completely eradicated by the sheer desire. She moved her hand and slid it underneath her underwear, moaning softly as she finally got the contact she'd been craving. She bit down on her lower lip, her eyes closing, focusing on the feeling.

"Can I…?" asked Maggie.

"You can do anything you want to do, Maggie, just do it."

She felt Maggie's hand slip beneath her underwear, covering her own. Then, she felt two of Maggie's fingers swipe against her entrance and she gasped. She frowned as she felt Maggie pull her hand away and she looked up to see her girlfriend placing both fingertips into her mouth.

"Oh God, Maggie," Alex panted, completely transfixed by the sight, her fingers moving faster, in tighter circles, her hips moving in concert.

"You taste so good, Alex," she said, pulling her fingers out slowly, deliberately. "So good. I can't wait to put my mouth on you, let you feel my tongue move against your clit."

"Maggie, don't stop," she pleaded.

"You're going to feel my tongue where your fingers are right now."

She moaned in response.

"I'm going to taste you, Alex. I'm going to lick your clit," she whispered in Alex's ear.

"Fuck, Maggie, I'm gonna…" she breathed. "I think I'm gonna come."

"I want you to," Maggie said, kissing her softly. "I want you to come for me. I want you to think about my mouth on you, tasting you, fucking you with my tongue, with my fingers, think about how hard you're going to come all over my mouth, my hands."

"Oh yes," she cried, "yes, I _want_ to come for you."

"Then do it," the other woman said. "Do it, Alex. Come for me. Come hard for me."

She bit her lip hard and her hand moved faster. She could feel it, she was almost there, about to crash over the edge.

"Alex, come for me _now_ ," Maggie demanded.

With that, she let herself go, her orgasm wresting control from her as her entire body stiffened while the waves of pleasure echoed throughout her entire body, a moan escaping from her lips. She slowly stopped stroking herself, once the swells of her orgasm finally ended, and she lay there on her bed, looking up into Maggie's dark brown eyes, completely spent.

"You… are exquisite," Maggie whispered, reverently, then kissed Alex's lips softly.

She blushed. "You're not half bad yourself," she said, shyly.

Maggie grinned. "Wait until Wednesday, Danvers." She stood. "Then I'll really rock your world."

She was filled with feelings — desire, warmth, happiness — but couldn't find the words to express how she was feeling, so she propped herself up on her elbows and smiled, instead. "Wednesday," she agreed.

"Goodnight, Alexandra Aphrodite Danvers," Maggie said, walking to the door.

She laughed. "Aphrodite?"

"Goddess of love and beauty. Can't think of a better word to describe you right now," Maggie shrugged.

Alex beamed. "You're too sweet. Goodnight, Maggie. Be safe."

"With Wednesday to look forward to? How could I not?" She opened the door. "I'll text you later," she promised.

Alex nodded. "Go. You're gonna be late."

"Totally worth it." With one last gaze, Maggie sighed and slipped out the door, letting it lock behind her.

Alex fell back on to the bed. "Wednesday," she said to herself, quietly. She couldn't wait.


End file.
